Artists make a racket for the latest edition of The Art of Ping Pong

Playful, witty, rude, energetic and brilliantly ridiculous are apt terms to describe this year’s editions of The Art of Ping Pong, featuring paddles created by some truly exciting UK-based artists and illustrators. The show, curated once more by Algy Batten, features work by creative luminaries such as Alan Kitching, Ryan Gander, James Joyce and Thierry Noir, and will see a concurrent auction amass thousands of pounds for a worthy cause, the Alzheimer's Society.
Ranging from politically charged bats such as Jake and Dinos Chapman's profane text-based contribution – which addresses the furor surrounding Brexit – to the cheeky, eye-popping 3D work of Wilfrid Wood, this year’s collection has something for everyone. Throughout November, The Art of Ping Pong's website offers fans the opportunity to browse the stellar line-up and bid online for any piece from the collection. All of the paddles will be on display until tomorrow at Shoreditch's 71A Gallery.
The prospect of owning these art pieces is made all the more exciting by the cause the auction supports – the Alzheimer's Society is a UK charity leading the fight against dementia. And if you aren't lucky enough to win the bid for your favourite paddle, head to the show and get your hands on the limited-edition book, produced to accompany the exhibition.
British artist, designer and director Filfury's bat is made laser cut layers of plywood
James Joyce hand-painted his birch wood ply bat; and Damien Poulain's paddle
Nylon Sky's bat features a monochrome design with maple wood and inlaid Perspex
Ryan Gander dished up a rustic wooden paddle serving board, while Lakwena Maciver's paddle got straight to the point
Matt Blease rolled in with a skateboard-inspired bat, complete with wheels and grip tape
South London illustrator Jacob Everett's bat faces off against itself, while Wilfrid Wood's paddle, made from paper and pulp, portrays Ibrahaim Hamamoto. The Egyptian Paralympic table tennis champion uses his mouth to hold the bat after having lots both arms in a train accident when he was 10 years old
British born, New York-based Jon Burgerman's paddle celebrates the 'Doodle' art style he is known for; and Helsinki-based designer Lina Linko looks to the sea for her creation
Morag Myerscough's graphic, neon bat; and David Shillinglaw's bat nods to Pop art
INFORMATION
The auction runs until midnight on 31 November. ’The Art of Ping Pong’ is on view until 8 November at 71A Gallery. For more information, visit The Art of Ping Pong website
ADDRESS
71A Gallery
71 Leonard Street
London EC2A 4QS
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
-
Goldwin 0’s first-ever performance wear is body-mapped to keep you cool
The ‘Performance Capsule’ from Goldwin 0 – an experimental offshoot of Japanese technical wear label Goldwin – draws inspiration from trail running for its meticulously tested sportswear, which uses experimental ventilation techniques to help you work out in the heat
-
Shop the gloriously mad inner workings of Gary Card’s brain in London’s Soho
Set designer and artist Gary Card has taken over London's Plaster Store – expect chaos and some really good accessories
-
Venerable British car-maker AC goes OTT with the high-output, low-slung AC GT SuperSport
Pitched at all-American fans of the original AC Cobra, the GT SuperSport is a fearsome two-seat roadster with more muscle than ever before
-
Shop the gloriously mad inner workings of Gary Card’s brain in London’s Soho
Set designer and artist Gary Card has taken over London's Plaster Store – expect chaos and some really good accessories
-
Meet the New York-based artists destabilising the boundaries of society
A new show in London presents seven young New York-based artists who are pushing against the borders between refined aesthetics and primal materiality
-
Leila Bartell’s cloudscapes are breezily distorted, a response to an evermore digital world
‘Memory Fields’ is the London-based artist’s solo exhibition at Tristan Hoare Gallery (until 25 July 2025)
-
A bespoke 40m mixed-media dragon is the centrepiece of Glastonbury’s new chill-out area
New for 2025 is Dragon's Tail – a space to offer some calm within Glastonbury’s late-night area with artwork by Edgar Phillips at its heart
-
Emerging artist Kasia Wozniak’s traditional photography techniques make for ethereal images
Wozniak’s photographs, taken with a 19th-century Gandolfi camera, are currently on show at Incubator, London
-
Vincent Van Gogh and Anselm Kiefer are in rich and intimate dialogue at the Royal Academy of Arts
German artist Anselm Kiefer has paid tribute to Van Gogh throughout his career. When their work is viewed together, a rich relationship is revealed
-
Alice Adams, Louise Bourgeois, and Eva Hesse delve into art’s ‘uckiness’ at The Courtauld
New exhibition ‘Abstract Erotic’ (until 14 September 2025) sees artists experiment with the grotesque
-
Get lost in Megan Rooney’s abstract, emotional paintings
The artist finds worlds in yellow and blue at Thaddaeus Ropac London