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 January 1, 1961, Indiana writes that the year began "on an affirmative note with close friends near: not a large number after all these years on the Slip, but as sizeable as J. [his partner, fashion designer John Kloss] could manage for dinner anyway." He notes that Lenore Tawney, Stephen and Barbara Durkee, Arthur Carr, and Rolf Nelson were in attendance, and that there were many I Ching readings.

Indiana also records that there was "general approbation" for his paintings The Triumph of Tira and Terre Haute, and that his direction was "set for the year: black ground confirmed, tilling raw sienna."