Presley Bergmooser began her art journey in a way many of us Gen-Zers can relate to: making duct tape wallets. But she quickly evolved her skills as an artist—the 22-year-old professional muralist has now painted walls all over the country. Alongside artistic pursuits, Presley is also an aspiring bodybuilder training for her first show in November. She documents her strength training journey on her TikTok channel.

We spoke to Presley about her dynamic dual life, the rapid growth of her mural business, and her disciplines as a dedicated bodybuilder. She shared insights into how she balances these two passions, and the real-world people and inspirations that have driven her ambitions. From the creativity of art to the rigor of training, Presley revealed how she’s able to do it all and still push herself further.

Q: Where did your art journey start?

I’m sure you remember when duct tape wallets were a thing. Homegirl, I would camp out in front of the TV and just make duct tape wallets all day. It evolved through the years. I would make little charms for jewelry and necklaces, and then I sold those at my local street fair. I made, like, $300 in my booth, and I was like, I am rich.

Then, when all my friends were going to U of M, West Virginia, Michigan State, I would paint the school colors or mascots on the pockets of the shorts or on jean jackets. I was actually able to do a jacket for the coach of Michigan State football, which was really cool. He ordered, like, a $400 jean jacket and said: “I want you to paint on it”. I was like, oh my gosh, this is a really expensive mistake if something goes wrong.

Q: When did you do your first mural?

2021. It was at my local bakery that I actually worked at. The owner was like, “I want a mural, and I want you to do it.” I was 19, I had never done a mural before. I didn’t measure anything. I didn’t put a mock up together. I didn’t even use exterior paints. Looking back on it, my skin crawls, because so many things could have gone wrong and nothing went wrong.

The fun thing is that we didn’t ask permission from the city. In my jurisdiction, there’s weird rules about murals because they fall under signage laws. So it’s kind of tricky. You’re supposed to get permission. We were like, we’re gonna ask for forgiveness, because we want to do it. So we did it, and then the community loved it. So then we were like, we won’t get in trouble for it now, because everyone likes it. That was the first mural, and then it just snowballed from there.

Q: What’s a core sports memory of yours?

In high school, I tried out for the volleyball team, and I didn’t make it. I didn’t even make the freshman team. It was one of those things where I was reminded: you’re not the most talented, you’re not the fastest, you’re not the strongest. But my coaches always complimented me on hard working I was. That’s always been something that I tell myself. No matter what, I will be the person who works the hardest in the room.

I ended up playing softball and basketball in high school. I was terrible at basketball, but the varsity coach said: “Presley, you did not make the team because you’re good at basketball. You made the team because of the type of person that you are.” He was one of those stereotypical hardass movie coaches, so coming from him, it’s something that I still like love to think about.

Q: Who’s someone that inspired your fitness journey?

I don’t know if you know David Goggins. He was a Navy Seal who has a fantastic defy all the odds kind of story. I read his book, and I was like, there’s absolutely no reason that I can’t do hard things like that. That’s always been the mantra, but I was like, I have all of this life ahead of me. I can do literally whatever I want. So I started running, and that was when I got the idea of maybe running a marathon.

Q: What’s next in your bodybuilding journey?

I was on Tiktok one day when I was painting a mural at the U of M campus. One fitness girl that I follow was talking about competing, and she was like, “I finally decided to do it, I’m using this coach.” He’s really reputable among women. I’ve struggled in the past as pretty much all females at this point have with eating issues. So that was something that was important to me. I don’t need someone where I’m gonna be hospitalized afterwards. She was like, “his name is Jeremy DeSantis.” And I was like what the fuck? This girl lives in, like, Hawaii, and she’s using the trainer from my gym in middle of nowhere, Michigan.

I was like, okay, if anything is a sign, that’s a sign. So I reached out to him a couple months later, we started prep, and my bodybuilding show is November 2 of this year, so in three weeks. It is 1,000% the hardest thing I’ve ever done, and one of the most rewarding things I’ve ever done.

Q: Why did you choose to focus your TikTok channel on fitness?

If you scroll far enough down on my TikTok, you’ll see painting videos. Figuring out social media for businesses and art is so weird because it took me a while to realize that people don’t care that I paint. Well, they care, but like people aren’t as interested in it as I am. Finding the right way to market that was tricky for me, so I deleted TikTok for a while. When I got back on I was like, you know what? I just want to post. I just want this to be fun and silly. So then I just started making it silly stuff, like random shit with my friends. And then when I started bodybuilding, there was a switch. I wanted to connect with other people who know who I am. I don’t need followers. It would just be a way to connect with other girls who are like, I’m also eating tilapia today.

Q: Did you major in art?

No, I actually majored in advertising management. I was responsible for paying for my college tuition, and I was like, I can already paint. I know I’m not amazing, but I want to go to school for something that I know nothing about. And advertising seemed like a like a baby between business and art. So I was like, why not? And MSU also has one of the top advertising programs in the country.

Q: How do you balance your fitness journey and your art business?

I’m a Type A personality to a T. When I was younger, I was the complete opposite. You could hand me something and I’d lose it within five minutes. But in 2020, I became obsessed with scheduling and time management. I felt like my days were flying by despite having so many goals. I started watching YouTube videos and read “Organize Tomorrow, Today.” The book emphasized scheduling instead of making to-do lists, which are like graveyards. Now I set regular meetings with myself.

I also genuinely love training, bodybuilding, and my business. I love doing what I do for a living. It’s not easy—I wake up around 4:45 or 5 a.m. most days. But I just can’t stand the thought of wasting potential and the idea that I could have achieved more if I had worked harder.

Q: What’s a project that meant a lot to you?

I was a student at MSU when the shooting happened in 2023, and I painted portraits of each of the victims and have been able to gift them to each of the families since then. It was so powerful— Brian and Arielle were sophomores and Alex was my year, and I painted them in the week that campus was shut down after the incident.

Q: What’s your future with content creation?

I plan on doing some YouTube. I actually have a couple videos set up right now. I’m a YouTube kid at heart. I would love to just have it. I don’t need thousands of subscribers, but if someone wants to know something, and I have a video about it, that would be awesome. So I definitely plan on continuing to pour myself into it, especially over the next couple of years, because I plan on moving from home to Austin. I plan on moving and documenting that. And I’ve waited my entire life to be in my 20s. I firmly believe I was born to be in my 20s.

Q: Are you open to commission?

Yes! I’m booking canvases still for this year and then booking murals for early 2025.