Ping-Pong's Endless Summer at Rockaway Beach

This summer, Rockaway Beach in Queens, New York, is home to something you don't see every day — six one-of-a-kind Ping-Pong tables designed by artists, sitting right on the sand. The exhibition is called "Between Tides," and it opened on a Saturday at Beach 67. Anyone can walk up and play for free, with paddles and balls available to borrow at a kiosk on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays through September 13.

The show was organized by Gabriela López Dena of the Public Art Fund. She stayed up all night in the rain to watch a crane carefully place the heavy tables on the beach. The opening weekend featured live matches by professional Ping-Pong players, plus free ice cream and cotton candy for the crowd.

López Dena said Ping-Pong has a long and interesting history. It started as a parlor game in Victorian England, later became a symbol of peace between the United States and China during the Cold War, and eventually grew into an Olympic sport. Today, it even has a Hollywood connection — actor Timothée Chalamet recently played a Ping-Pong champion in the movie "Marty Supreme." López Dena believes the sport brings people together no matter who they are. "Ping-Pong is a game that allows very different kinds of people to come together across race, class, backgrounds, gender," she said.

Six artists and groups were invited to design tables that are both sculptures and fully playable games. Each artist had a personal memory of the sport. Their designs range from funny and strange to deeply meaningful.

Brooklyn artist Moko Fukuyama grew up playing Ping-Pong at a hotel in Japan during family vacations. Her table crashes into a real 1958 aluminum boat called "Old School," which she found at a nearby marina. Colorful, swirling tentacles wrap around both the table and the boat, making it look like a giant sea monster is bursting up through the sand. One thick tentacle rises right where a player would normally serve, which means you have to adjust your game on the fly — just like in real life.

The art group SUPERFLEX comes from Copenhagen, Denmark, and built their table from slabs of pink stone. The base has geometric openings that could attract coral, algae, and fish if the table were ever underwater. Players can choose to avoid the circular holes cut into the tabletop — or aim straight for them.

Amalia Pica grew up in Argentina, where her family would set up a folding table near a river for big, rowdy Ping-Pong games. For Rockaway Beach, she connected four tables in a zigzag shape, so up to 10 people can play at the same time. She decorated the surfaces with colorful symbols from maritime signal flags to spell out "Fair Play" and "Come Play." Pica hopes that total strangers will team up and enjoy the game together.

Sisters Lisa and Janelle Iglesias were born in Queens and work together as the art duo Las Hermanas Iglesias. Their table is both a Ping-Pong table and a musical instrument at the same time. Drums, cymbals, a handpan, and the bars of a glockenspiel are built into the surface, all tuned to the key of A. Every time the ball bounces, it creates a random musical sound.

Carlos H. Matos is based in Mexico City and blended Ping-Pong with Ulama, an ancient Mesoamerican ball game. His table has angled side walls, a volcanic rock base, and two tall posts with small hoops. "In some parts of Mesoamerica, when you passed the ball through the hoop, you automatically won," he said. Players at Rockaway are free to make up their own rules.

Brooklyn artist Ilana Harris-Babou designed her table to make everyone equally bad at the game. The sparkly surface is covered with a ceramic obstacle course — objects like flip-flops, sunscreen, a book, and sunglasses are built right into the table. She also added nearby seating for people who just want to sit and watch. The goal, she said, is to make the whole thing feel welcoming to everyone.