Michael Jardine
Break Time
My work focuses on workers during their breaks and people rummaging through skips on construction sites— quiet moments that reveal the emotional textures of masculinity. These scenes capture endurance, stillness, and survival in overlooked spaces. Through this work, I reflect on class and the contrast between vulnerability and power in the lives of those who do the heavy lifting.
Building sites were part of my formative years; I lived on one and grew up working on them. They were my first exposure to labour and the adult world. This personal history grounds my interest in the physicality of work and the quiet resilience that defines these spaces.
Exposed, acrylic on wood, 19 x 20cm
Site at Night, acrylic on wood, 19 x 20cm
Break Time, acrylic on MDF, 30 x 30cm
Phone Call, acrylic on wood, 27 x 21cm
Smoke Break, acrylic on MDF, 30 x 30cm
Skip Dive, acrylic on MDF, 30 x 30cm
Fly Tip, acrylic on MDF, 30 x 30cm