Safeguarding Kyiv's Heritage: A City Reconstructing Itself Under the Threat of War.

Lesia Danylenko showed off with satisfaction her recently completed front door. Local helpers had given the moniker its elegant transom window the “crescent roll”, a playful reference to its arched shape. “Personally, I believe it’s more of a peafowl,” she commented, appreciating its branch-like details. The restoration project at one of Kyiv’s early 20th-century art nouveau houses was funded through residents, who commemorated the work with several impromptu pavement parties.

It was also an act of defiance against a neighboring state, she explained: “We are trying to live like normal people in spite of the war. It’s about shaping our life in the most positive way. We’re not afraid of remaining in Ukraine. I could have left, starting anew to a foreign land. Instead, I’m here. The new entrance symbolizes our commitment to our homeland.”

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

Safeguarding Kyiv’s historic buildings could be considered strange at a period when missile strikes frequently hit the capital, resulting in death and destruction. Since the beginning of the current year, offensive operations have been dramatically stepped up. After each attack, workers board up broken windows with plywood and attempt, where possible, to salvage residential buildings.

Within the Bombs, a Fight for Identity

Despite the violence, a band of activists has been working to preserve the city’s deteriorating mansions, built in a whimsical style known as Ukrainian modernism. Danylenko’s house is in the downtown Shevchenkivskyi district. It was constructed in 1906 and was originally the home of a prosperous fur dealer. Its facade is decorated with horse chestnut leaves and intricate camomile flowers.

“They are symbols of Kyiv. These properties are increasingly scarce nowadays,” Danylenko stated. The mansion was designed by an architect of Central European origin. Several other buildings in the vicinity exhibit comparable art nouveau characteristics, including a lack of symmetry – with a medieval spire on one side and a projection on the other. One popular house in the area displays two unhappy white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a demonic figure.

Several Dangers to History

But external attacks is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face profit-driven developers who demolish listed buildings, unethical officials and a governing class indifferent or hostile to the city’s rich architectural history. The severe winter climate adds another difficulty.

“Kyiv is a city where wealth dictates. We lack substantive political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He claimed the city’s leadership was allied with many of the developers who bulldoze important houses. Perov stated that the vision 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 civically minded activists who once defended older properties were now fighting on the frontline or had been killed. The protracted conflict meant that all citizens was facing monetary strain, he added, including those in the legal system who inexplicably ruled in favour of suspect new-build schemes. “The longer this goes on the more we see degradation of our society and state bodies,” he argued.

Demolition and Disregard

One egregious example of destruction is in the riverside Podil neighbourhood. The street was the site of classical 19th-century houses. A developer who obtained the plot had committed to preserve its charming brick facade. In the immediate aftermath of the full-scale invasion, heavy machinery razed it to the ground. Recently, a crane dug foundations for a new commercial complex, observed by a stern security guard.

Anatolii Pohorily, a heritage supporter, said there was little optimism for the remaining turquoise-painted houses on the site. Sometimes developers levelled old properties while stating they were doing “historical excavation”, he said. A former political system also inflicted immense damage on the capital, reconstructing its central boulevard after the second world war so it could accommodate military vehicles.

Upholding the Legacy

One of Kyiv’s most renowned defenders of historic buildings, a cultural activist, was killed in 2022 while fighting in a eastern city. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were continuing his vital preservation work. There were originally 3,500 masonry mansions in Kyiv, many built for the city’s prosperous business magnates. Only 80 of their authentic doors remain, she said.

“It wasn’t external attacks that eliminated them. It was us,” she said with regret. “The war could continue for another 20 years. If we neglect architecture now nothing will be left,” she emphasized. Chudna recently helped to restore a unique creeper-covered house built in 1910, which serves as the headquarters of her cultural organization and operates as a film set and museum. The property has a new red door and original-style railings; inside is a historic washroom and antique mirrors.

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

The building’s resident, artist Yurii Pikul, described his home as “incredibly atmospheric and a little bit cold”. Why do many residents not cherish the past? “Sadly they lack education and taste. It’s all about business. We are attempting as a country to move towards the west. But we are still not yet close from such cultural awareness,” he said. Soviet-era ways of thinking remained, with people hesitant to take personal responsibility for their architectural setting, he added.

Resilience in Action

Some buildings are crumbling because of bureaucratic indifference. Chudna showed a once-magical villa hidden behind a modern hospital. Its roof had caved in; pigeons roosted among its smashed windows; rubbish lay under a fairytale tower. “Many times we don’t win,” she admitted. “This activity is a coping mechanism for us. We are attempting to save all this heritage and aesthetic value.”

In the face of war and neglect, these citizens continue their work, one building at a time, stating that to rebuild a city’s soul, you must first cherish its history.