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 entry for August 31, 1962, Indiana records that he has only one clear month to go before the show (his first solo show at the Stable Gallery) and that he turned to a construction, Eat, again. The page includes a sketch of the work, with a pitchfork to its left. The artist originally incorporated a pitchfork into the sculpture, but it was later replaced by a peg.

Indiana also notes that Lenore Tawney came over for dinner, and that she had never been so open with him before.