Protecting the Capital's Architectural Legacy: A City Reconstructing Itself Under the Threat of War.

Lesia Danylenko showed off with satisfaction her recently completed front door. The restoration team had affectionately dubbed its elegant transom window the “pastry”, a lighthearted tribute to its bowed shape. “In my opinion it’s more of a showy bird,” she remarked, gazing at its twig-detailed ornamentation. The renovation effort at one of Kyiv’s early 20th-century art nouveau houses was made possible by residents, who commemorated the work with several impromptu pavement parties.

It was also an expression of defiance in the face of a neighboring state, she elaborated: “We are trying to live like ordinary people in spite of the war. It’s about arranging our life in the best possible way. We’re not afraid of remaining in our country. I could have left, starting anew to a foreign land. Conversely, I’m here. The new entrance shows our commitment to our homeland.”

“We are trying to live like normal people despite the war. It’s about shaping our life in the best possible way.”

Preserving Kyiv’s architectural heritage may appear strange at a time when drone attacks regularly target the capital, causing death and destruction. Since the beginning of the current year, aerial raids have been significantly intensified. After each strike, workers seal blown-out windows with plywood and try, where possible, to save residential buildings.

Among the Bombs, a Fight for History

Amid the bombs, a group of activists has been attempting to save the city’s deteriorating mansions, built in a distinctive style known as Ukrainian modernism. Danylenko’s house is in the central Shevchenkivskyi district. It was erected in 1906 and was first the home of a wealthy fur dealer. Its outer walls is decorated with horse chestnut leaves and fine camomile flowers.

“They are symbols of Kyiv. These properties are increasingly scarce in the present day,” Danylenko said. The building was designed by an architect of Central European origin. Several other buildings nearby showcase analogous art nouveau features, including an irregular shape – with a medieval spire on one side and a turret on the other. One beloved house in the area displays two sullen white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a imp.

Several Challenges to Heritage

But armed conflict is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face unscrupulous developers who raze listed buildings, dishonest officials and a administrative body indifferent or opposed to the city’s vast architectural history. The severe winter climate imposes another burden.

“Kyiv is a city where money wins. We don’t have substantive political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He asserted the city’s mayor was friends with many of the developers who bulldoze important houses. Perov further alleged that the concept for the capital comes straight out of a bygone era. The mayor denies these claims, attributing them from political rivals.

Perov said many of the public-spirited activists who once championed older properties were now fighting on the frontline or had been lost. The protracted conflict meant that the entire society was facing financial problems, he added, including judicial figures who mysteriously ruled in favour of suspect new-build schemes. “The longer this persists the more we see degradation of our society and governing institutions,” he argued.

Destruction and Abandonment

One egregious demolition site is in the waterside Podil neighbourhood. The street was home to classical 19th-century houses. A developer who acquired the plot had pledged to preserve its picturesque brick facade. Shortly following the full-scale invasion, diggers demolished it. Recently, a crane dug foundations for a new commercial complex, watched by a surly security guard.

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

Continuing the Work

One of Kyiv’s most prominent champions of historic buildings, a cultural activist, was lost his life in 2022 while engaged in a contested area. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were persevering in his vital preservation work. There were originally 3,500 masonry mansions in Kyiv, many erected for the city’s successful industrialists. Only 80 of their original 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 don’t defend architecture now not a thing will be left,” she emphasized. Chudna recently helped to restore a characterful ivy-draped house built in 1910, which acts as the headquarters of her cultural organization and also serves as a film set and museum. The property has a new crimson entrance and period-correct railings; inside is a historic washroom and antique mirrors.

“The war could last another 20 years. If we don’t defend architecture now nothing will be left.”

The building’s resident, artist Yurii Pikul, described his home as “incredibly atmospheric and a little bit cold”. Why do many citizens not value the past? “Sadly they are without education and taste. It’s all about business. We are attempting as a country to move towards the west. But we are still some distance away from such cultural awareness,” he said. Outdated ways of thinking persisted, with people unwilling to take personal responsibility for their architectural setting, he added.

Resilience in Action

Some buildings are crumbling because of official neglect. Chudna pointed to a once-magical villa concealed behind a modern hospital. Its roof had collapsed; pigeons nested among its smashed windows; debris lay under a storybook tower. “Often we lose the battle,” she admitted. “This activity is a form of healing for us. We are attempting to save all this heritage and aesthetic value.”

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