BILL BLAST

William Cordero aka Bill Blast is an American artist and one of the greatest New York Graffiti writers of the 1980’s period. A New York City native, Cordero was born in 1964, and grew up in Harlem. In the early 80’s he was part of a group of subway writers that eventually made the shift to the gallery scene. Bill primarily painted on the walls of basketball courts and has, in fact, very few trains to his credit.  In 1982, in what became commonly known as “Rock Steady Park,” Bill painted two masterpieces on opposite sides of a handball court. The first was entitled, Sky’s the Limit, referencing the lyrics in Keep On by the group, D-Train. The painting consisted of several prominent New York City landmarks and created an urban backdrop for the empowering message inherent within the lyrics. The second mural was entitled, Eye of the Tiger. Today, the murals are long gone. This tiny plot of land on West 99th Street and Amsterdam Avenue, once a popular practice location for the b-boy’ing legends, Rock Steady Crew, has been reclaimed and remodeled and the handball courts no longer exist.

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Bill attended the High School of Art and Design and, after working as a consultant on the film, Beat Street (1984; directed by Stan Latham) he attended the Parsons School of Design where he pursued a major in painting.  As his talent and skill as a professional muralist developed, Bill was commissioned to produce large scale murals for WCVB-TV, the ABC Network Affiliate in Boston, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and Art Train, a traveling museum currently located in Detroit. Other, select exhibitions include, Galerie Yaki Kornbilt in Amsterdam, Holland, Museum Boymans in Rotterdam, Holland, Gallozzi La Placa and Fun Gallery in New York City and Boston University in Boston, MA.

Bill’s work is currently on view within the exhibit entitled, “Art vs. Transit,” curated by Henry Chalfant for The Bronx Museum of the Arts. His work can also be found in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY.