 For many years, he was a director of Balai Pustaka, a publishing firm in Indonesia.In 1987, Subagio Sastrowardoyo, together with Goenawan Mohamad, Sapardi Djoko Damono, Umar Kayam, and John H. McGlynn, established the Lontar Foundation, a non-profit organization with the primary aim of promoting Indonesian literature and culture through the translation of Indonesian literary works.Subagio Sastrowardoyo died in Jakarta on 18 July 1995.