Safeguarding Kyiv's Architectural Legacy: A City Rebuilding Its Foundations Amidst the Onslaught of War.

Lesia Danylenko proudly presented her recently completed front door. Volunteers had affectionately dubbed its elegant transom window the “pastry”, a lighthearted tribute to its arched shape. “I think it’s more of a peafowl,” she remarked, admiring its branch-like features. The renovation effort at one of Kyiv’s turn-of-the-century art nouveau houses was supported by residents, who celebrated with two lively pavement parties.

It was also an expression of defiance against a neighboring state, she explained: “We are trying to live like ordinary people in spite of the war. It’s about organizing our life in the most positive way. We’re not afraid of staying in our country. The possibility to emigrate existed, starting anew to another European nation. Conversely, I’m here. The new entrance represents our commitment to our homeland.”

“Our aim is to live like normal people despite the war. It’s about arranging our life in the optimal way.”

Protecting Kyiv’s architectural heritage seems paradoxical at a moment when drone attacks frequently hit the capital, bringing death and destruction. Since the start of the current year, bombing campaigns have been significantly intensified. After each assault, workers board up broken windows with plywood and endeavor, where possible, to save residential buildings.

Amid the Explosions, a Campaign for Beauty

Amid the bombs, a group of activists has been working to save the city’s decaying mansions, built in a whimsical style known as Ukrainian modernism. Danylenko’s house is in the historic Shevchenkivskyi district. It was built in 1906 and was first the home of a affluent fur dealer. Its facade is adorned with horse chestnut leaves and intricate camomile flowers.

“These structures stand as symbols of Kyiv. These properties are uncommon in the present day,” Danylenko stated. The mansion was designed by an architect of Central European origin. Several other buildings in the vicinity exhibit comparable art nouveau elements, including a lack of symmetry – with a medieval spire on one side and a projection on the other. One beloved house in the area features two forlorn white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a demonic figure.

Multiple Threats to Heritage

But military aggression is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face profit-driven developers who raze listed buildings, dishonest officials and a governing class unconcerned or resistant to the city’s profound architectural history. The harsh winter climate adds another difficulty.

“Kyiv is a city where capital prevails. We don’t have substantive political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He alleged the city’s leadership was allied with many of the developers who flatten important houses. Perov further alleged that the concept 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 defended older properties were now fighting on the frontline or had been lost. The lengthy conflict meant that everyone 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 decline of our society and governing institutions,” he argued.

Destruction and Disregard

One notorious location of loss is in the waterside Podil neighbourhood. The street was home to classical 19th-century houses. A developer who purchased the plot had agreed to preserve its attractive brick facade. Shortly following the 2022 invasion, diggers razed it to the ground. Recently, a crane prepared foundations for a new shopping and business centre, monitored by a stern security guard.

Anatolii Pohorily, a heritage supporter, said there was little optimism for the remaining coloured houses on the site. Sometimes developers destroyed old properties while asserting they were doing “scientific study”, he said. A previous regime 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 prominent champions of historic buildings, a heritage expert, was lost his life in 2022 while fighting in the frontline. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were continuing his crucial preservation work. There were originally 3,500 brick-built mansions in Kyiv, many erected for the city’s prosperous entrepreneurs. Only 80 of their period doors survived, she said.

“It was not foreign rockets that eliminated them. It was us,” she lamented. “The war could go on for another 20 years. If we fail to protect architecture now not a thing will be left,” she continued. 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 also serves as a film set and museum. The property has a new crimson entrance and period-correct railings; inside is a period bathroom and antique mirrors.

“The war could go on for 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 “incredibly atmospheric and a little bit cold”. Why do many citizens not value the past? “Unfortunately they are without education and taste. It’s all about business. We are striving 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 built surroundings, he added.

Hope in Preservation

Some buildings are crumbling because of institutional abandonment. Chudna pointed to a once-magical villa tucked away behind a modern hospital. Its roof had collapsed; pigeons nested among its shattered windows; refuse lay under a fairytale tower. “Frequently we are unsuccessful,” she acknowledged. “This activity is therapy for us. We are attempting to save all this past and splendour.”

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