[1] Tirta moved to New York City upon the completion of his law degree in 1965,[2] where he worked at the United Nations headquarters for several years.
[2][3] Instead of utilizing his law degree as a profession, he started his career as a designer using traditional, hand-made batik cloth.
[1] An advocate of batik decades before the fabric regained popularity, Tirta's designs gained attention both in Indonesia and internationally.
Tirta's work achieved worldwide recognition in 1994 when he designed the batik shirts worn by world leaders at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summitt in Bogor, Indonesia.
[6] The ceramics line was called Pusaka Maha Karya ("Heritage Masterpieces"), divided into two collections, Modang and Hokokai.
[6] In a 2009 interview with Time Magazine, Tirta listed some of his diverse influences, which included Pakubuwono X and other Javanese royalty, novelist Pramoedya Ananta Toer, Indonesian painters Raden Saleh and Srihadi, Yves Saint Laurent, Halston, Ludwig van Beethoven Johann Sebastian Bach and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
[3] Iwan Tirta died on 31 July 2010 at Abdi Waluyo Hospital in Menteng, Central Jakarta, at the age of 75.
[1][2] He had suffered from diabetes and several strokes in the preceding years[5] He was buried at Karet Bivak cemetery in Jakarta near his mother's tomb.
March 2013, Darmawangsa Hotel http://kennedyvoice-berliner.com/home/2013/03/19/mobiliariluxuryindustryconference/ https://web.archive.org/web/20160303233035/http://mobiliarigroup.com/events/indonesia-international-luxury-fair-2013/ - Tribute to Iwan Tirta by Berita Satu Media Holding and Gelar Nusantara.
The management of PT Iwan Tirta has also paid tribute to the late maestro, visiting his tomb on last 8 July 2013.