Xie's work would continue to bring in money for the charity. In 1994, Xie compiled his works into a book, "I Desire to Go to School," and donated the proceeds. "Big Eyes" fetched 308,000 yuan (US$38,623) at an auction in 2006. Xie, who was by then the director of the Chinese Photographer Association, again donated the proceeds to Project Hope, which was enough to build a Hope primary school in Tibet. He suggested a name for it: "Big Eyes."

Su Mingjuan - the girl in the "Big Eyes" [CPA]

"The title of 'Big Eyes' doesn't belong to [Su Mingjuan, the girl in the photo] or me, it is an icon of the time and society," Xie says.

For someone who has made his career out of telling stories with images, Xie is also surprisingly effusive. He can recount the stories behind every picture he took, the lives of every subject he captured. He still keeps track of the children he photographed 20 years ago.

"Every time I went to the countryside, I would visit the Hope primary schools there…and try to find the ones who once entered my camera and continue their stories," Xie says. "In the next 20 years, these children will have become the backbone of the nation."

He continues to take photos of rural schoolchildren and maintains them in the same three categories that he presented in 1992: kewang, or desire, to show the children's eagerness to learn; aixin, or love, to show the people who devoted their lives to the education cause; and xiwang, or hope, to show the potential of the children and Hope schools.

China's education system has made rapid improvements since the 1980s, but the successes have been concentrated in the urban areas. Government spending in rural areas is still below the national average, and while the eastern cities have achieved near-universal enrollment and completion, less than 60 percent of rural schoolchildren graduate from junior middle school. In 2006, drop-out rates in the less developed central and western regions reached as high as 30 percent, or 1.1 million children.

Project Hope's mission is far from over. These days, it is also focusing on improving educational opportunities for disabled children and the children of migrant workers. But in October, the CYDF will add a new chapter to Project Hope: The main theme of its commemoration will be gan'en, or gratitude.

Participants will include 100 children who benefited from Project Hope, like Su Mingjuan; 100 teachers who devoted their lives to their education; deputies of the 100 most successfully managed Hope primary schools; representatives from 100 companies that have made great contributions to Project Hope; and 100 journalists and others who promoted the charity.

Still, Xie is modest when asked about his role in Project Hope's success. "My camera," he says, "has made some contribution to the development of Project Hope." He remains unfazed by fame. He doesn't boast of the money his work has helped to raise. He takes pride in his work, but not any credit for its impact. The success belongs to the children he photographed and the people who believed in them, not him.

"I feel so happy that nearly all the children in my photos received higher education," Xie says. "And I know the reason: The whole society gave much care to them, and the public trusted me, trusted my photo stories.

"Rather than a philanthropist, I am a volunteer, and always will be."

(China.org.cn July 3, 2009)