Elizabeth Jiménez Montelongo was born in California. Her parents both emigrated from Mexico to the United States in their early twenties and settled in Sonoma County.

Elizabeth grew up in Petaluma and moved to San José, California where she attended San José State University. She studied Mexican-American history, was involved in Chicano and undocumented immigrant student organizations, attended workshops about indigenous Mesoamerican culture, and participated in Mesoamerican dance practice. Elizabeth lived in Paris, France from August 2007 to July 2008, where she took her first course in Nahuatl.

Elizabeth earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Pictorial Arts and a Bachelor of Arts in French from San José State University. Her cultural roots and her increased awareness of Mesoamerican history and culture have greatly influenced her work. Elizabeth has exhibited her artwork in the San Francisco Bay Area, in Seattle, and in the state of New York (St. James and New York City). She currently works in her studio in Santa Clara, California.