Sanja Iveković was born in 1949 in Zagreb, where she graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts and where she currently lives and works. She was initially associated with Nova Umjetnićka Praksa (New Artistic Practices), the first generation of Conceptual artists in Yugoslavia in the 1970s who tried to democratise art by abandoning the gallery space and taking to the streets through performances and the use of cheap and affordable materials. With a heterogeneous work that covers photography, performance, video and installation, Iveković takes her own life and social positioning as a woman as a starting point to construct a critical reflection on the influence of the mass media and the politics of power in the contexts of socialist and post-socialist society. Iveković has participated in many social and political initiatives such as Electra - The Women’s Art Centre and the Centre for Women’s Studies in Zagreb.

Her exhibitions include Kölnischer Kunstverein, Cologne (2007); Van Abbemuseum, Eindhoven (2009); MoMA, New York (2011); and Mudam, Luxembourg (2012). She has participated in the Gwangju Biennial (2010); Documenta, Kassel (1987, 2002, 2012 and 2017); and the Istanbul Biennial (2007 and 2009). Her work is in the collections of MoMA, New York; Moderna Galerija, Zagreb; National Gallery of Canada; and Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam.