Preserving Kyiv's Architectural Legacy: A City Reconstructing Itself Under the Threat of War.

Lesia Danylenko showed off with satisfaction her freshly fitted front door. The restoration team had affectionately dubbed its graceful transom window the “crescent roll”, a whimsical nod to its bowed shape. “Personally, I believe it’s more of a peafowl,” she commented, appreciating its tree limb-inspired ornamentation. The restoration project at one of Kyiv’s pre-World War I art nouveau houses was supported by residents, who marked the occasion with a couple of impromptu pavement parties.

It was also an expression of resistance towards a neighboring state, she explained: “Our aim is to live like normal people regardless of the war. It’s about organizing our life in the best possible way. Fear does not drive us of living in our homeland. I could have left, moving away to another European nation. On the contrary, I’m here. The new entrance represents our commitment to our homeland.”

“We are trying to live like ordinary people in spite of the war. It’s about shaping our life in the most positive way.”

Preserving Kyiv’s historic buildings could be considered paradoxical at a moment when drone attacks regularly target the capital, bringing death and destruction. Since the start of the current year, bombing campaigns have been dramatically stepped up. After each strike, workers board up shattered windows with plywood and attempt, where possible, to save residential buildings.

Within the Bombs, a Campaign for History

Despite the violence, a band of activists has been striving to preserve the city’s crumbling mansions, built in a distinctive style known as Ukrainian modernism. Danylenko’s house is in the central Shevchenkivskyi district. It was constructed in 1906 and was initially the home of a wealthy fur dealer. Its facade is embellished with horse chestnut leaves and fine camomile flowers.

“They are symbols of Kyiv. These properties are uncommon nowadays,” Danylenko noted. The mansion was designed by an architect of Central European origin. Several other buildings close by showcase similar art nouveau characteristics, including asymmetry – with a medieval spire on one side and a projection on the other. One popular house in the area boasts two sullen white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a imp.

Several Threats to Heritage

But armed conflict is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face profit-driven developers who demolish listed buildings, unethical officials and a political leadership unconcerned or hostile to the city’s rich architectural history. The bitter winter climate presents another challenge.

“Kyiv is a city where money wins. We are missing substantive political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He alleged the city’s leadership was friends with many of the developers who flatten important houses. Perov added that the plan for the capital comes straight out of a bygone era. The mayor has refuted these claims, saying they originate from political rivals.

Perov said many of the public-spirited activists who once protected older properties were now serving in the military or had been killed. The lengthy conflict meant that everyone was facing monetary strain, he added, including those in the legal system who curiously ruled in favour of dubious new-build schemes. “The longer this goes on the more we see degradation of our society and state bodies,” he argued.

Loss and Abandonment

One notorious demolition site is in the historic Podil neighbourhood. The street was home to classical 19th-century houses. A developer who obtained the plot had committed to preserve its charming brick facade. In the immediate aftermath of the onset of major hostilities, heavy machinery razed it to the ground. Recently, a crane dug foundations for a new shopping and business centre, watched by a surly security guard.

Anatolii Pohorily, a heritage supporter, said there was faint chance for the remaining blue-green houses on the site. Sometimes developers demolished old properties while claiming they were doing “scientific study”, he said. A previous regime also inflicted immense damage on the capital, reconstructing its main thoroughfare after the second world war so it could facilitate large-scale parades.

Carrying the Torch

One of Kyiv’s most renowned defenders of historic buildings, a tour guide and blogger, was lost his life in 2022 while serving in the frontline. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were persevering in his crucial preservation work. There were originally 3,500 stone mansions in Kyiv, many constructed for the city’s wealthy industrialists. Only 80 of their authentic doors are still in existence, she said.

“It was not aerial bombardments that eliminated them. It was us,” she said with regret. “The war could go on for another 20 years. If we neglect architecture now little will be left,” she emphasized. Chudna recently helped to restore a unique 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 red door and authentic railings; inside is a vintage sanitary facility and antique mirrors.

“The war could last another 20 years. If we don’t defend architecture now little will be left.”

The building’s occupant, artist Yurii Pikul, described his home as “quite special and a little bit cold”. Why do many locals not value the past? “Unfortunately they are without education and taste. It’s all about business. We are striving as a country to go to the west. But we are still a way off 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 Restoration

Some buildings are crumbling because of official neglect. Chudna indicated a once-magical villa tucked away behind a modern hospital. Its roof had fallen; pigeons made their home among its shattered windows; rubbish lay under a fairytale tower. “Often we lose the battle,” she admitted. “This activity is therapy for us. We are attempting to save all this past and splendour.”

In the face of conflict and development pressures, these activists continue their work, one door at a time, stating that to preserve a city’s identity, you must first protect its history.