Protecting Kyiv's Heritage: A City Reconstructing Itself in the Shadow of War.

Lesia Danylenko proudly presented her recently completed front door. Volunteers had affectionately dubbed its ornate transom window the “pastry”, a lighthearted tribute to its curved shape. “In my opinion it’s more of a peacock,” she stated, admiring its branch-like ornamentation. The renovation effort at one of Kyiv’s turn-of-the-century art nouveau houses was funded through residents, who marked the occasion with two neighbourhood pavement parties.

It was also an act of resistance in the face of a foreign power, she elaborated: “We are trying to live like everyday people regardless of the war. It’s about arranging our life in the most positive way. We have no fear of staying in our country. The possibility to emigrate existed, relocating to a foreign land. On the contrary, I’m here. The new entrance symbolizes our allegiance to our homeland.”

“Our aim is to live like normal people regardless of the war. It’s about organizing our life in the best possible way.”

Protecting Kyiv’s architectural heritage could be considered paradoxical at a moment when aerial assaults routinely fall the capital, bringing death and destruction. Since the onset of the current year, offensive operations have been significantly intensified. After each assault, workers board up shattered windows with plywood and try, where possible, to secure residential buildings.

Within the Explosions, a Fight for Identity

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

“These buildings represent symbols of Kyiv. These properties are quite rare today,” Danylenko noted. The residence was designed by an architect of Central European origin. Several other buildings nearby display similar art nouveau features, 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 imp.

Dual Dangers to History

But external attacks is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face unscrupulous developers who demolish listed buildings, unethical officials and a political leadership indifferent or resistant to the city’s vast architectural history. The severe winter climate presents another burden.

“Kyiv is a city where money wins. We don’t have genuine 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 further alleged that the vision for the capital is reminiscent of a different time. The mayor rejects 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 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 suspect new-build schemes. “The longer this continues the more we see deterioration of our society and state bodies,” he contended.

Loss and Disregard

One egregious 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 pledged to preserve its picturesque brick facade. Shortly following the full-scale invasion, diggers tore it down. Recently, a crane dug foundations for a new retail and office development, monitored by a unfriendly security guard.

Anatolii Pohorily, a heritage supporter, said there was faint chance for the remaining turquoise-painted houses on the site. Sometimes developers destroyed old properties while stating they were doing “scientific study”, he said. A 20th-century empire also wrought immense damage on the capital, redesigning its central boulevard after the second world war so it could allow for large-scale parades.

Upholding the Legacy

One of Kyiv’s most prominent champions of historic buildings, a cultural activist, 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 vital preservation work. There were originally 3,500 masonry mansions in Kyiv, many constructed for the city’s successful entrepreneurs. Only 80 of their period doors survived, she said.

“It was not foreign rockets that got rid of them. It was us,” she said with regret. “The war could last another 20 years. If we neglect architecture now nothing will be left,” she emphasized. Chudna recently helped to restore a characterful 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 red door and period-correct railings; inside is a vintage sanitary facility and antique mirrors.

“The war could last 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 “quite special and a little bit cold”. Why do many locals not value the past? “Sadly they lack education and taste. It’s all about business. We are attempting as a country to go to the west. But we are still some distance away from civilization,” he said. Outdated ways of thinking lingered, with people reluctant to take personal responsibility for their built surroundings, he added.

Hope in Preservation

Some buildings are crumbling because of institutional abandonment. Chudna indicated a once-magical villa hidden behind a modern hospital. Its roof had collapsed; pigeons made their home among its smashed windows; debris lay under a storybook tower. “Many times we are unsuccessful,” she conceded. “Restoration is therapy for us. We are trying to save all this heritage and beauty.”

In the face of destruction and development pressures, these activists continue their work, one building at a time, believing that to preserve a city’s identity, you must first cherish its stones.