Porter’s life celebrated

By Mitchell Jordan

She brought poetry to the people and in return the masses gathered at the Sydney Opera House to pay homage to the late Melbourne writer Dorothy Porter.

Porter, who passed away from breast cancer on 10 December, was given an official funeral in Melbourne last week, but also shared a strong affinity with Sydney, where she was born and spent much of her life.

-œDorothy loved Sydney and it [the Opera House] lived for her, explained Porter’s partner for the last 15 years, novelist Andrea Goldsmith.

A strong crowd consisting of friends, families and fans attended the Sydney celebration of Porter’s life and work on 18 December. Guest speakers and performers included Richard Gill, Paul Grabowsky, Katie Noonan, David Malouf, Peter Garrett, Judith Beveridge and Porter’s father, Chester Porter.

In a touching speech, Goldsmith stressed that Dorothy was by no means a -œcancer victim and maintained her vivacious, optimistic outlook.

-œDot was a live-r; she lived right until the very end, Goldsmith said.

These sentiments were apparent when Goldsmith read the final words of View from 417, the last poem Porter wrote before she died: -œSomething in me/despite everything/can’t believe my luck.

Best known for her unique work, The Monkey’s Mask, a detective story told in verse which won The Age Book of the Year Award, and the later verse novel, What a Piece of Work, which was shortlisted for the Miles Franklin Award, Porter also wrote libretti for chamber operas including The Ghost Wife and The Eternity Man. She dispelled the myth that writers are isolated, introverted people.

-œShe loved working with other artists, Goldsmith added.

Describing his daughter as -œan odd bod, an eccentric, a one-off, Chester Porter believed that Dorothy impacted many people’s lives with her passionate, uncompromising approach to life.

Porter acknowledged that his daughter had achieved a rare feat by not only making a living from poetry, but also making it accessible to readers.

-œThe simplicity of her poetry will live on, he said.