Protecting Kyiv's Architectural Legacy: A City Reconstructing Itself in the Shadow of War.

Lesia Danylenko showed off with satisfaction her freshly fitted front door. Volunteers had given the moniker its elegant transom window the “pastry”, a playful reference to its bowed shape. “In my opinion it’s more of a peacock,” she stated, gazing at its twig-detailed ornamentation. The renovation effort at one of Kyiv’s turn-of-the-century art nouveau houses was funded through residents, who celebrated with several impromptu pavement parties.

It was also an demonstration of opposition towards an invading force, she clarified: “We strive to live like ordinary people despite the war. It’s about organizing our life in the optimal way. We’re not afraid of remaining in Ukraine. I could have left, starting anew to a foreign land. Conversely, I’m here. The new entrance represents our commitment to our homeland.”

“Our aim is to live like everyday people in spite of the war. It’s about organizing our life in the most positive way.”

Safeguarding Kyiv’s historic buildings may appear paradoxical at a time when aerial assaults frequently hit the capital, resulting in death and destruction. Since the beginning of the current year, aerial raids have been notably increased. After each attack, workers seal shattered windows with plywood and try, where possible, to salvage residential buildings.

Amid the Conflict, a Fight for History

Despite the violence, a collective of activists has been working to save the city’s deteriorating mansions, built in a playful style known as Ukrainian modernism. Danylenko’s house is in the central Shevchenkivskyi district. It was built in 1906 and was originally the home of a prosperous fur dealer. Its exterior is adorned with horse chestnut leaves and fine camomile flowers.

“These structures stand as symbols of Kyiv. These properties are increasingly scarce today,” Danylenko said. The mansion was designed by a designer of Central European origin. Several other buildings close by exhibit analogous art nouveau elements, including a lack of symmetry – with a medieval spire on one side and a turret on the other. One popular house in the area displays two unhappy white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a imp.

Several Challenges to Legacy

But armed conflict is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face unprincipled developers who raze protected buildings, unethical officials and a governing class apathetic or hostile to the city’s profound architectural history. The harsh winter climate adds another challenge.

“Kyiv is a city where capital prevails. We don’t have genuine political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He asserted the city’s mayor was closely associated with many of the developers who bulldoze important houses. Perov stated that the vision for the capital harks back to a different time. The mayor rejects these claims, saying they originate from political rivals.

Perov said many of the community-oriented activists who once defended older properties were now serving in the military or had been killed. The protracted conflict meant that all citizens was facing economic hardship, he added, including those in the legal system who mysteriously ruled in favour of questionable new-build schemes. “The longer this continues the more we see degradation of our society and state bodies,” he remarked.

Destruction and Abandonment

One notorious location of loss is in the riverside Podil neighbourhood. The street was the site of classical 19th-century houses. A developer who purchased the plot had committed to preserve its charming brick facade. A day after the onset of major hostilities, diggers razed it to the ground. Recently, a crane excavated foundations for a new retail and office development, watched by a unfriendly security guard.

Anatolii Pohorily, a heritage supporter, said there was little optimism for the remaining turquoise-painted houses on the site. Sometimes developers demolished old properties while stating they were doing “scientific study”, he said. A former political system also caused immense damage on the capital, rebuilding its primary street after the second world war so it could accommodate military vehicles.

Continuing the Work

One of Kyiv’s most renowned defenders of historic buildings, a heritage expert, was fell in 2022 while serving in a eastern city. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were persevering in his crucial preservation work. There were at one time 3,500 masonry mansions in Kyiv, many constructed for the city’s successful industrialists. Only 80 of their period doors survived, she said.

“It wasn’t aerial bombardments that destroyed them. It was us,” she admitted sadly. “The war could last another 20 years. If we fail to protect architecture now nothing will be left,” she emphasized. Chudna recently helped to restore a full of character creeper-covered house built in 1910, which functions as the headquarters of her cultural organization and operates as a film set and museum. The property has a new crimson entrance and authentic railings; inside is a period bathroom and antique mirrors.

“The war could last another 20 years. If we fail to protect architecture now not a thing will be left.”

The building’s tenant, artist Yurii Pikul, described his home as “incredibly atmospheric and a little bit cold”. Why do many citizens not value the past? “Sadly they lack education and taste. It’s all about business. We are striving as a country to integrate with the west. But we are still some distance away from such cultural awareness,” he said. Soviet-era ways of thinking remained, with people unwilling to take personal responsibility for their built surroundings, he added.

Resilience in Preservation

Some buildings are falling apart because of official neglect. Chudna pointed to a once-magical villa hidden behind a modern hospital. Its roof had fallen; pigeons roosted among its shattered windows; refuse lay under a storybook tower. “Many times we don’t win,” she admitted. “This activity is a form of healing for us. We are trying to save all this history and splendour.”

In the face of destruction and neglect, these activists continue their work, one building at a time, stating that to preserve a city’s heart, you must first protect its walls.