Safeguarding Kyiv's Architectural Legacy: An Urban Center Reconstructing Itself Under the Threat of War.

Lesia Danylenko beamed with pride as she displayed her recently completed front door. The restoration team had given the moniker its ornate transom window the “croissant”, a whimsical nod to its curved shape. “Personally, I believe it’s more of a peafowl,” she stated, admiring its twig-detailed details. The renovation effort at one of Kyiv’s turn-of-the-century art nouveau houses was supported by residents, who celebrated with a couple of impromptu pavement parties.

It was also an act of opposition in the face of a neighboring state, she explained: “Our aim is to live like everyday people despite the war. It’s about organizing our life in the most positive way. Fear does not drive us of remaining in Ukraine. The possibility to emigrate existed, relocating to another European nation. Conversely, I’m here. The new entrance represents our commitment to our homeland.”

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

Protecting Kyiv’s architectural heritage could be considered paradoxical at a moment when aerial assaults frequently hit the capital, causing death and destruction. Since the beginning of the current year, bombing campaigns have been dramatically stepped up. After each strike, workers seal blown-out windows with plywood and try, where possible, to save residential buildings.

Among the Bombs, a Battle for Identity

Despite the violence, a collective of activists has been working to conserve the city’s crumbling mansions, built in a playful style known as Ukrainian modernism. Danylenko’s house is in the historic Shevchenkivskyi district. It was built in 1906 and was initially the home of a prosperous fur dealer. Its outer walls is embellished with horse chestnut leaves and delicate camomile flowers.

“These buildings represent symbols of Kyiv. These properties are uncommon nowadays,” Danylenko stated. The mansion was designed by an architect of Austrian-German origin. Several other buildings in the vicinity showcase similar art nouveau characteristics, including a lack of symmetry – with a medieval spire on one side and a small tower on the other. One much-loved house in the area features two sullen white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a devil.

Several Threats to History

But armed conflict is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face unscrupulous developers who demolish protected buildings, unethical officials and a governing class indifferent or hostile to the city’s profound architectural history. The bitter winter climate adds another burden.

“Kyiv is a city where capital prevails. We are missing genuine political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He claimed the city’s leadership was friends with many of the developers who destroy important houses. Perov stated that the plan for the capital comes straight out of a bygone era. The mayor denies 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 fallen. The ongoing conflict meant that everyone was facing monetary strain, he added, including judicial figures who curiously ruled in favour of suspect new-build schemes. “The longer this persists the more we see decline of our society and state bodies,” he contended.

Demolition and Disregard

One notorious demolition site is in the riverside Podil neighbourhood. The street was home to classical 19th-century houses. A developer who acquired the plot had committed to preserve its charming brick facade. A day after the full-scale invasion, heavy machinery razed it to the ground. Recently, a crane prepared foundations for a new retail and office development, watched by a stern security guard.

Anatolii Pohorily, a heritage supporter, said there was not much hope for the remaining turquoise-painted houses on the site. Sometimes developers destroyed old properties while claiming they were doing “historical excavation”, he said. A 20th-century empire also caused immense damage on the capital, redesigning its central boulevard after the second world war so it could allow for military vehicles.

Upholding the Legacy

One of Kyiv’s most renowned defenders of historic buildings, a tour guide and blogger, was killed in 2022 while engaged in a eastern city. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were continuing his important preservation work. There were initially 3,500 brick-built mansions in Kyiv, many constructed for the city’s successful business magnates. Only 80 of their period doors remain, she said.

“It wasn’t external attacks that got rid of them. It was us,” she lamented. “The war could last another 20 years. If we neglect architecture now little will be left,” she emphasized. Chudna recently helped to restore a characterful vine-clad house built in 1910, which acts as the headquarters of her cultural organization and doubles as a film set and museum. The property has a new vermilion portal and period-correct railings; inside is a vintage sanitary facility and antique mirrors.

“The war could go on for another 20 years. If we fail to protect architecture now nothing will be left.”

The building’s tenant, artist Yurii Pikul, described his home as “very cool and a little bit cold”. Why do many citizens not appreciate the past? “Sadly they are without education and taste. It’s all about business. We are trying as a country to go to the west. But we are still not yet close from such cultural awareness,” he said. Outdated ways of thinking remained, with people unwilling to take personal responsibility for their urban environment, he added.

Therapy in Preservation

Some buildings are falling apart because of bureaucratic indifference. Chudna showed a once-magical villa concealed behind a modern hospital. Its roof had fallen; pigeons nested among its shattered windows; debris lay under a fairytale tower. “Many times we lose the battle,” she conceded. “Preservation work is a form of healing for us. We are attempting to save all this heritage and beauty.”

In the face of destruction and development pressures, these volunteers continue their work, one facade at a time, believing that to preserve a city’s heart, you must first cherish its walls.