Rediscovering Martin Foss: Honoring a philosopher’s legacy

A man from Wisconsin recently reached out after reading my post about Martin Foss. This sculptor shared his deeply personal connection with Foss’s philosophy. He even corresponded with Foss in the 1960s before Foss passed away in 1968. Here’s an excerpt from his email:

“I have been studying [Foss’s] works for over forty years and have not been able to find anyone else to discuss his works with. I was a sculptor and taught at the University of Wisconsin for almost 30 years. I found modern theories of art to be inadequate, and I read Martin Foss mainly because of how he explained the importance of art, poetry, and drama. I decided to write a book or essay on the difference between Creating and Making as it pertains to the visual arts. I worked on it over the years while drawn back to understanding a ‘total picture’ of what the content of his books was really about. It took me about thirty years to really understand his explanation of Value, Existence, Being, and his theory of knowledge.”

After we managed to get the Martin Foss Wikipedia page up, he wrote again:

“After so many years, I have made contact with someone who has read at least one of his books, and equally important is how ready you are to dig up hidden material. Maybe I will see my remaining wish come true…that someone will pick up the ball and run with it. You know what I mean. Someone who will help preserve his name and ideas…and that has fallen to you now. Maybe I am being too presumptuous, but it is late at night for me.”

It’s humbling to see how much Foss’s work has impacted this man and to realize the importance of preserving Foss’s legacy.

In my research, I was fortunate to track down Foss’s granddaughter, Eliza, who kindly agreed to help fill in some gaps. Creating a Wikipedia page turned out to be a more complex process than I imagined. There are rigorous standards to ensure pages aren’t used for self-promotion or advertising. But after navigating the hurdles, the page is live: Martin Foss on Wikipedia.

This has been a labor of love, and I hope the page brings Martin Foss’s work the recognition it deserves. If you’re interested in philosophy, creativity, or the intersection of art and knowledge, I invite you to explore Foss’s ideas. Let’s keep his legacy alive.