Robert Indiana kept a series of illustrated journals during the late 1950s and 1960s, in which he discusses the development of his work as well as his daily life on Coenties Slip.

In his journal page dated July 31, 1962, Indiana records that the first part of what he deems a joyless summer has passed, "dull but for my work, wh[ich] h[a]s kept me occupied continuously every day so far," and that he has not even begun the major retouching for his upcoming show (his first solo exhibition at the Stable Gallery). He describes working on Brow, gouging out a ribbon of wood between its black face and natural shaft, with plans to create a band of red or of wire.

The entry includes a small sketch of 8, which he designates as a painting for August, and describes as an "8 within a hex[agon] within a circle within a square." 

In the entry Indiana also records receiving a card from Museum of Modern Art curator Campell Wylly, from the Yucatan and with a stamp of President Kennedy's visit to Mexico. He details projects around the loft, such as helping J. (his partner, fashion designer John Kloss) paint bookcases, going out to dinner at a German restaurant, and a stroll to the flower market, from which they returned "loaded down with parcels of greenery."