HANGZHOU - A giant white board, resembling a film screen, was recently set up beside the West Lake in Hangzhou, capital city of Zhejiang province. People from over the world are leaving their imprint on it.

Set up as somewhere for designers to put up their creations for a possible logo for the newly crowned World Heritage site, the board is 7 meters long and 2.5 meters high.

Hangzhou's West Lake made it to UNESCO's World Heritage List in June.

Within three hours of putting up the board, or "Painting Wall" as the locals call it, on the morning of Nov 24, nearly two-thirds of the space was covered with all kinds of images - from abstract art to cartoons, in color or black and white.

"The response was overwhelming," said Wang Lijun, supervisor of the committee. "Not only did we see crowds flocking toward the wall, but also received calls from across the world, asking for details about participation."

An online post inviting logos appeared three days before the wall was set up. And thanks to Sina and other online media, the committee has received more than 40 entries through electronic and regular mail from countries including France, Australia and the United States.

"We have been in urgent need of a distinctive logo to promote the image of West Lake and represent its heritage," said Wang.

The final approved logo will be used on maps, souvenirs and road signs across Hangzhou, a city that receives 60 million tourists a year. Wang feels this is a chance of life-time to link one's name to the World Heritage.

Mao Zhiming, a 78-year-old retired worker from Jiangshan, which neighbors Hangzhou, was the first to leave his painting on the wall. It was his way of paying a homage to the lake.

"For Zhejiang natives of my generation, the West Lake is like an ever-young beauty. We just want to express our love for such a beauty, and leave the other things to the professionals," said Mao, who traveled hours by bus to see the wall being set up and drew a pagoda and a bridge on the board, which he thought best represented West Lake.

An Indian student who said his name is Sahadev had a similar opinion. The design major learned about the logo-collection drive online. He immediately wrote to the committee, asking how he might participate.

The 19-year-old from Bangalore described Hangzhou as a magical city that perfectly combined modern life and history, and therefore wanted to come up with a vivid logo that best represented its spirit.

"There is no knowing if I will win, and it doesn't really matter. It will be a wonderful experience for me," he wrote in a letter to the committee.

According to the committee, the winner will be selected through public voting. The results will be declared by the end of this year.

Han Jing at the Qianjiang Evening News contributed to this story.

China Daily

(China Daily 12/01/2011 page7)