Preserving Kyiv's Architectural Legacy: An Urban Center Rebuilding Itself in the Shadow of War.

Lesia Danylenko beamed with pride as she displayed her newly installed front door. Volunteers had given the moniker its graceful transom window the “pastry”, a playful reference to its curved shape. “Personally, I believe it’s more of a peafowl,” she stated, gazing at its twig-detailed details. The renovation effort at one of Kyiv’s early 20th-century art nouveau houses was made possible by residents, who celebrated with a couple of neighbourhood pavement parties.

It was also an expression of defiance towards a foreign power, she clarified: “We strive to live like everyday people regardless of the war. It’s about arranging our life in the most positive way. Fear does not drive us of staying in Ukraine. The possibility to emigrate existed, relocating to another European nation. On the contrary, I’m here. The new entrance symbolizes our commitment to our homeland.”

“We strive to live like everyday people regardless of the war. It’s about shaping our life in the most positive way.”

Protecting Kyiv’s historic buildings could be considered unusual at a period when drone attacks routinely fall the capital, resulting in death and destruction. Since the onset 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 salvage residential buildings.

Amid the Bombs, a Campaign for Identity

Amid the bombs, a band of activists has been working to preserve the city’s decaying mansions, built in a playful style known as Ukrainian modernism. Danylenko’s house is in the central Shevchenkivskyi district. It was constructed in 1906 and was originally the home of a affluent fur dealer. Its exterior is adorned with horse chestnut leaves and delicate camomile flowers.

“These buildings represent symbols of Kyiv. These properties are uncommon in the present day,” Danylenko noted. The mansion was designed by a designer of Central European origin. Several other buildings close by showcase comparable art nouveau features, including an irregular shape – with a gothic tower on one side and a small tower on the other. One much-loved house in the area features two forlorn white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a demonic figure.

Multiple Challenges to Heritage

But external attacks is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face profit-driven developers who raze historically significant buildings, dishonest officials and a administrative body apathetic or opposed to the city’s vast architectural history. The severe winter climate presents another burden.

“Kyiv is a city where capital prevails. We lack real political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He asserted the city’s mayor was allied with many of the developers who flatten important houses. Perov stated that the concept for the capital comes straight out of a previous decade. The mayor rejects these claims, stating they come from political rivals.

Perov said many of the public-spirited activists who once protected older properties were now engaged in combat or had been fallen. The protracted conflict meant that everyone was facing financial problems, he added, including judicial figures who mysteriously ruled in favour of questionable new-build schemes. “The longer this continues the more we see deterioration of our society and public institutions,” he remarked.

Destruction and Abandonment

One notorious example of destruction is in the waterside Podil neighbourhood. The street was home to classical 19th-century houses. A developer who acquired the plot had agreed to preserve its charming brick facade. Shortly following the 2022 invasion, diggers tore it down. Recently, a crane prepared foundations for a new shopping and business centre, watched by a stern security guard.

Anatolii Pohorily, a heritage supporter, said there was faint chance for the remaining blue-green houses on the site. Sometimes developers destroyed old properties while asserting they were doing “historical excavation”, he said. A former political system also caused immense damage on the capital, redesigning its primary street after the second world war so it could allow for large-scale parades.

Carrying the Torch

One of Kyiv’s most notable champions of historic buildings, a tour guide and blogger, was lost his life in 2022 while fighting in a contested area. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were carrying on his crucial preservation work. There were originally 3,500 stone mansions in Kyiv, many erected for the city’s wealthy industrialists. Only 80 of their original doors remain, she said.

“It wasn’t external attacks that eliminated them. It was us,” she lamented. “The war could go on for another 20 years. If we don’t defend architecture now nothing will be left,” she emphasized. Chudna recently helped to restore a full of character creeper-covered house built in 1910, which serves as the headquarters of her cultural organization and doubles as a film set and museum. The property has a new red door and period-correct railings; inside is a historic washroom and antique mirrors.

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

The building’s occupant, artist Yurii Pikul, described his home as “incredibly atmospheric and a little bit cold”. Why do many residents not appreciate the past? “Sadly they are without education and taste. It’s all about business. We are attempting as a country to integrate with the west. But we are still not yet close from civilization,” he said. Outdated ways of thinking remained, with people hesitant to take personal responsibility for their architectural setting, he added.

Therapy in Preservation

Some buildings are collapsing because of institutional abandonment. Chudna indicated a once-magical villa hidden behind a modern hospital. Its roof had collapsed; pigeons roosted among its broken windows; rubbish lay under a whimsical tower. “Frequently we don’t win,” she admitted. “This activity is a coping mechanism for us. We are trying to save all this heritage and beauty.”

In the face of conflict and commercial interests, these citizens continue their work, one door at a time, believing that to preserve a city’s heart, you must first cherish its walls.