Timeline - A Conceptual Knit

Hurricane Sandy, historic blizzard Nemo, Whitey Bulger trial and the Marathon bombing - a lot happened to Boston this past year. I purposely say “to” Boston rather than “in” Boston because each event took a toll on the collective psyche of everyone who claims Boston or the surrounding areas as home (Boston is so much more than its city limits).

“Boston Strong” became not just a rally cry but a mantra to remind ourselves that in addition to strength we also have the will and the power to endure bad things and move into the future better and wiser. One coping mechanism for many Bostonians was to get away from it all by attending or watching a sporting event. The Red Sox, Patriots, Celtics, Bruins and Revolution all provided hours of escape and entertainment.

Timeline is a conceptual knit I designed and knit for the Yarn Graffiti event by the Fashion Design and Retailing Department. It was displayed on the Framingham State University campus from September 16th thru September 27th.

This conceptual knit design records the results of Boston's professional sports teams during the past year.

Between September 1, 2012 (on the left) and August 31, 2013 (on the right), colored ridges were added successively to the right edge to represent wins and losses.

Naturally, wins by the Red Sox are red. The Celtics are green; the Bruins are gold; and the Patriots and Revolution are navy blue (soccer IS football so the Revolution and Patriot games are both counted as such). Losses by any team are colored gray.

The twelve colored blocks along the upper and lower edges each correspond to one calendar month.

A break in the pattern occurs on April 15, 2013, which was the day of the Boston Marathon. The knitted panel, showing the Boston skyline and the words "Boston Strong" was designed by Lisa McFetridge to honor the marathon victims, and is included here with her permission.

Conceptual knitting was developed by Lea Redmond of Leafcutter Design in Berkley, California and encourages the knitter to explore whimsy and adventure in knitting.