Meet Lauren Piemont Clamp | Art & Wellness Writer and Content Creator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Lauren Piemont Clamp and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Lauren, every day, we about how much execution matters, but we think ideas matter as well. How did you come up with the idea for your business?
In 2019, I started working as a freelance art writer. I wrote for galleries, museums and arts publications mostly within the southeast. I still do this and I love it, but in 2024 I got the idea to start my own platform. As much as I enjoyed working with others and contributing to publications, editors ultimately had control of what I could cover, when I could cover it and even how I could cover it. There was so much more I wanted to say in my own words and on my own terms, so at the beginning of 2024, I started my Substack, Chouette.

At first, it was a place just for art writing. That was and still is my specialty, and I built an audience of friends and colleagues who wanted to read about contemporary art, art history and the art world in general. Last fall, I decided to expand Chouette to also cover wellness. If there are two things I love the most, they’re art and wellness. I love sharing tips on how to live your best life as much as I love reviewing exhibitions and profiling artists, so this combination of topics made a lot of sense to me. I’m always overflowing with ideas for articles and I feel inspired to share my two favorite worlds of beauty with my audience.

I share frequently about both art and wellness on my Instagram, too, and I have recently started a YouTube channel on these topics so that I can provide longer format audio visual versions of my content for those who don’t have the time to read articles or want to dive deeper than Reels allow.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Even though I create a wide variety of content, I am first and foremost a writer. Writing is a lifelong interest of mine and how I show up in the world as a writer has evolved over the years.

In 2019, I started to work as a freelance art writer. I offered my services to galleries and museums and started pitching stories to arts publications. In 2024, I started my own platform for art writing. It’s a Substack called Chouette.

Chouette is a French word that is often used as slang to mean “cool.” It’s not a “cool” word, however. In English, the equivalent would be something like “neat” or “swell.” It’s far from trendy, just like my Substack. When I was freelancing, I had to make a lot of concessions on what I could write about. Editors were looking for coverage of cutting-edge art or timely, hip exhibitions. While I have nothing against art like this, I ultimately craved a place where I could explore what I love. I have classic taste and a love for art history that isn’t always what’s popular or “in.” On Chouette, I can be as off-trend as I want to be, which I love.

Chouette was only about art at first, but this fall I expanded it to cover wellness, too. My two favorite things are art and wellness, so combining them under one brand made a lot of sense to me. I am a wellness junkie and I have to sift through a lot of trends to get to what works. It’s similar to the way I have to sift through a lot of trendy, contemporary art to find what speaks to me, so again, the “chouette” theme is at play. I also consider art and wellness their own worlds of beauty that add value and substance to our lives. While many people might find them incongruent, I find they complement one another.

It wasn’t easy to arrive at the place of starting my own platform. I had to deal with a lot of rejection to get here and I also had to build my confidence that I could cultivate and maintain my own audience. I have learned a lot about what I like, what’s popular and how to remain true to myself. While there have been challenges, the whole journey has been more positive than anything else. I’ve become so inspired that I’ve expanded into Instagram and YouTube content creation to supplement what I write on Substack. Trying my hand at these platforms has been difficult but rewarding. My ultimate goal is to create a multi-media platform for beauty in all its forms. Everything I try (and fail at) is a step towards that goal.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
If I had an out-of-town friend coming to Charlotte, I would take them on a food tour. Charlotte’s food scene is booming right now, and there are so many locally-owned gems these days. I love Undercurrent for coffee, the Albertine or Rada for dinner and Two Scoops Creamery for dessert.

Plaza Midwood is my neck of the woods, so that would be the hangout spot. There’s always lots to do and see, but I mostly love walking its residential streets. There are some beautiful historic homes and the tree canopy is a Charlotte staple.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I want to dedicate my Shoutout to my husband, Chris Clamp. He is a full time artist who has started and successfully run his own businesses over the years. He knows the ins and out of the entrepreneurial life, and he gives excellent advice. He always encourages me to put myself out there and take control of my career. He’s also endlessly supportive and loving, and he’s definitely by biggest fan. I couldn’t do what I do without him!

Website: https://laurenpclamp.substack.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laurenpclamp?igsh=bXp1bDNndWVqYWxx&utm_source=qr

Youtube: https://youtube.com/@laurenpclamp?si=GIxT03UB04RlHMzQ