Protecting Kyiv's Architectural Legacy: An Urban Center Rebuilding Its Foundations Amidst the Onslaught of War.

Lesia Danylenko showed off with satisfaction her freshly fitted front door. Local helpers had given the moniker its elegant transom window the “croissant”, a whimsical nod to its arched shape. “I think it’s more of a peacock,” she remarked, appreciating its tree limb-inspired details. The renovation effort at one of Kyiv’s pre-World War I art nouveau houses was funded through residents, who celebrated with several lively pavement parties.

It was also an act of defiance in the face of an invading force, she elaborated: “Our aim is to live like everyday people despite the war. It’s about arranging our life in the best possible way. We’re not afraid of staying in our country. I had the option to depart, relocating to Italy. Conversely, I’m here. The new entrance represents our allegiance to our homeland.”

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

Preserving Kyiv’s architectural heritage could be considered unusual at a moment when aerial assaults frequently hit the capital, resulting in death and destruction. Since the onset of the current year, offensive operations have been notably increased. After each strike, workers seal shattered windows with plywood and endeavor, where possible, to save residential buildings.

Within the Explosions, a Campaign for History

Amid the bombs, a group 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 central Shevchenkivskyi district. It was constructed in 1906 and was initially the home of a wealthy fur dealer. Its exterior is adorned with horse chestnut leaves and fine camomile flowers.

“They are symbols of Kyiv. These properties are quite rare today,” Danylenko said. The building was designed by an architect of Central European origin. Several other buildings nearby showcase similar art nouveau elements, including a lack of symmetry – with a pointed turret 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 imp.

Dual Threats to Heritage

But armed conflict is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face unprincipled developers who raze listed buildings, dishonest officials and a governing class apathetic or resistant to the city’s rich architectural history. The harsh winter climate imposes another burden.

“Kyiv is a city where capital prevails. We don’t have substantive political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He claimed the city’s mayor was closely associated with many of the developers who destroy important houses. Perov further alleged that the plan for the capital harks back to a bygone era. The mayor has refuted these claims, stating they come from political rivals.

Perov said many of the civically minded activists who once championed older properties were now serving in the military or had been fallen. The protracted conflict meant that everyone was facing economic hardship, he added, including judicial figures who mysteriously ruled in favour of dubious new-build schemes. “The longer this goes on the more we see degradation of our society and governing institutions,” he remarked.

Loss and Disregard

One glaring demolition site is in the waterside Podil neighbourhood. The street was home to classical 19th-century houses. A developer who obtained the plot had pledged to preserve its charming brick facade. In the immediate aftermath of the onset of major hostilities, excavators razed it to the ground. Recently, a crane excavated foundations for a new retail and office development, observed by a stern security guard.

Anatolii Pohorily, a heritage supporter, said there was faint chance for the remaining coloured houses on the site. Sometimes developers levelled old properties while stating they were doing “historical excavation”, he said. A previous regime also inflicted immense damage on the capital, reconstructing its central boulevard after the second world war so it could facilitate official processions.

Upholding the Legacy

One of Kyiv’s most notable defenders of historic buildings, a cultural activist, was killed in 2022 while serving 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 brick-built mansions in Kyiv, many constructed for the city’s wealthy business magnates. Only 80 of their period doors remain, she said.

“It wasn’t aerial bombardments that got rid of them. It was us,” she said with regret. “The war could go on for another 20 years. If we don’t defend architecture now not a thing will be left,” she added. Chudna recently helped to restore a unique 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 don’t defend architecture now not a thing 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 appreciate the past? “Regrettably they lack 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 that standard,” he said. Soviet-era ways of thinking lingered, with people reluctant to take personal responsibility for their urban environment, he added.

Therapy in Restoration

Some buildings are falling apart because of institutional abandonment. Chudna showed a once-magical villa hidden behind a modern hospital. Its roof had caved in; pigeons nested among its broken windows; refuse lay under a storybook tower. “Frequently we are unsuccessful,” she conceded. “Restoration is therapy for us. We are striving to save all this past and aesthetic value.”

In the face of destruction and development pressures, these activists continue their work, one door at a time, stating that to save a city’s heart, you must first protect its stones.