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Shifu Liu Quanjun in yellow silk leads a group of Tai Ji Circle students in white through a Taiji posture at night in Navigator Square, Archway, beside a lit Christmas tree, December 2021

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Taijiquan Becomes UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage

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In December 2020, Taijiquan was added to UNESCO's list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Tai Ji Circle marked the moment with a short film of congratulations, sent to China.

Tai Ji Circle students, with Shifu Liu Quanjun and Chris Jones, sent their congratulations on China's Taijiquan being included in the list. Many thanks to the students who helped with the demonstration while keeping their social distance and staying safe. Big thanks, too, to Raúl Casquet for filming and editing, and for getting the videos to us so quickly to send over to China.

Tai Ji Circle celebrates Taijiquan becoming Intangible Cultural Heritage, December 2020

Tai Ji Circle has marked the anniversary each December since, with a group demonstration outdoors in London. The photo above is from Navigator Square in Archway in December 2021; the ones below are from later years: a London park on 12 December 2022 and the South Bank on 9 December 2023.

Shifu Liu Quanjun in yellow silk leads students in white, pink and red silk through a Taiji posture on autumn leaves in a London square, Victorian houses behindShifu Liu Quanjun and Tai Ji Circle students in silk uniforms hold a Taiji posture on the wet South Bank, with the Thames and Big Ben behind them, 9 December 2023

From the Taiji Circle archive.