Written by
Marcus G Blassingame

In May 2026, author and designer Kev Addison unveiled Unfurl, a debut novel that arrives with far more than a book jacket and a single release-week push. Set against the backdrop of New York, NY, the project expands into a living, multi-sensory experience—woven through fiction, film, music, photography, and art—to tell one cohesive story from every angle.

Rather than treating these elements as separate marketing moments, Addison built each activation as an extension of the novel’s narrative universe, released in direct parallel with the book rather than after it. The result is a seamless movement across mediums—literature, sound, image, and physical space—inviting readers to step into Unfurl not just with imagination, but with presence.

“Unfurl started as a research portal to understand more of our internal human complexities. It quickly formed into something much more grand once it was coupled with imagination and a stellar cast of talent,” Addison said.

At the center of it all is the novel itself: published by Pine Book Writing and available now exclusively on Amazon in both paperback and eBook formats. Unfurl explores grief, identity, and becoming—a story for those who live in the in-between: people reaching toward the familiarity of their roots while testing the possibilities of their wings.

To amplify those themes, Addison created a full slate of original creative activations, each designed to be experienced alongside the book:

Original Playlist — Released alongside the novel and available on Spotify, the curated soundtrack functions as an audio portal into Unfurl’s emotional landscape, offering an ultra-world-building companion for readers as they move through the story.

Film Trailer & Teaser Campaign — A cinematic trailer and visual teaser series introduced Unfurl’s look and atmosphere ahead of the book’s release. Shot in New York by DP Jalen Turner and produced by Tiffany Barney, the campaign is available to watch on the project’s official website.

Photography Series — Captured by New York-based photographer Maria Smith, the photography series translates key scenes, characters, and recurring motifs from the novel into vivid, standalone images—bringing pivotal moments into a new visual register.

Art Exhibition — In celebration of the novel’s debut, Addison collaborated with artist Lamontrelle Manning on a curated exhibition held at Baci Studio in Brooklyn’s Dumbo on July 25. The show featured illustrations adapted into paintings—each piece created as a direct response to Unfurl’s story.

From first page to final exhibit, Unfurl doesn’t ask to be consumed in parts. It asks to be experienced as a whole—an expanding narrative world, designed to unfold.

Official Trailer

The Book Launch

Unfurl: A Prospective Art Study — When Literature Turns Into a Place

Unfurl arrived as more than an exhibition; it functioned as a translation—an exchange between mediums that turns a written moment into lived atmosphere. Through a collaboration with friends at @bkstylefoundation (Rick Davy) and @bacistudiodumbo (Baci Studios Dumbo), the project presented Unfurl: A Prospective Art Study, extending a scene first set in Chapter 6 of the novel into a visual world audiences could step into.

At the center of that world were artists Lamontrelle Manning and Kev Addison, who approached the original narrative with the precision of interpretation and the freedom of reinvention. Their paintings didn’t merely depict a chapter—they reframed it. What began as text became space; what existed on the page became something you could inhabit. Viewers moved through the work as though the story had widened its borders, letting meaning unfold through color, composition, and presence.

The exhibition also offered a rare kind of accessibility. It gathered creatives and devoted readers alongside first-timers and general art enthusiasts, positioning recognition and discovery side by side. Whether the novel’s context was familiar or new, the experience communicated its own entry point—inviting visitors to follow the thread from one visual moment to the next.

In journalistic terms, Unfurl told a clear story of process: it showed how narrative can migrate—from literature to image, from reading to seeing, from interpretation to immersion. The result was an environment that didn’t ask audiences to stand outside of meaning, but to walk through it.

On View
Unfurl: A Prospective Art Study is on view through August 2nd.

Where to Read
Unfurl: A Novel is available on Amazon.

The Art Exhibition

Creative Credits
Artists: @lamontrelle @premier.kev
Creative Strategist & Head of PR: @tiffanyybarneyy
Social Media Director: @amiraonthewxll
Photographer: @henry_starboy21