Safeguarding Kyiv's Architectural Legacy: An Urban Center Rebuilding Itself Amidst the Onslaught of Conflict.

Lesia Danylenko showed off with satisfaction her newly installed front door. The restoration team had playfully nicknamed its graceful transom window the “pastry”, a whimsical nod to its curved shape. “In my opinion it’s more of a peafowl,” she commented, admiring its branch-like ornamentation. The restoration project at one of Kyiv’s pre-World War I art nouveau houses was made possible by residents, who marked the occasion with two impromptu pavement parties.

It was also an demonstration of defiance against a foreign power, she elaborated: “We are trying to live like normal people in spite of the war. It’s about arranging our life in the optimal way. Fear does not drive us of remaining in Ukraine. The possibility to emigrate existed, relocating to Italy. On the contrary, I’m here. The new entrance shows our dedication to our homeland.”

“We are trying to live like everyday people despite the war. It’s about organizing our life in the most positive way.”

Safeguarding Kyiv’s architectural heritage may appear strange at a moment when missile strikes frequently hit the capital, bringing death and destruction. Since the start of the current year, bombing campaigns have been dramatically stepped up. After each assault, workers seal shattered windows with plywood and try, where possible, to save residential buildings.

Within the Conflict, a Campaign for Beauty

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

“These buildings represent symbols of Kyiv. These properties are quite rare in the present day,” Danylenko noted. The building was designed by a designer of Austrian-German origin. Several other buildings nearby display analogous art nouveau features, including a lack of symmetry – with a gothic tower on one side and a small tower on the other. One popular house in the area features two unhappy white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a imp.

Several Challenges to History

But external attacks is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face profit-driven developers who raze historically significant buildings, unethical officials and a governing class unconcerned or resistant to the city’s rich architectural history. The harsh winter climate imposes another difficulty.

“Kyiv is a city where capital prevails. We are missing genuine political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He alleged the city’s mayor was friends with many of the developers who destroy important houses. Perov added that the vision for the capital is reminiscent of a different time. The mayor has refuted these claims, saying they originate from political rivals.

Perov said many of the civically minded activists who once defended older properties were now serving in the military or had been fallen. The lengthy conflict meant that everyone was facing financial problems, he added, including judicial figures who inexplicably ruled in favour of questionable new-build schemes. “The longer this persists the more we see decline of our society and governing institutions,” he remarked.

Destruction and Disregard

One glaring example of destruction is in the historic Podil neighbourhood. The street was the site of classical 19th-century houses. A developer who purchased the plot had committed to preserve its charming brick facade. Shortly following the full-scale invasion, heavy machinery razed it to the ground. Recently, a crane excavated foundations for a new shopping and business centre, monitored by a surly security guard.

Anatolii Pohorily, a heritage supporter, said there was not much hope for the remaining turquoise-painted houses on the site. Sometimes developers levelled old properties while stating they were doing “archaeological research”, he said. A 20th-century empire also wrought immense damage on the capital, rebuilding its central boulevard after the second world war so it could accommodate official processions.

Continuing the Work

One of Kyiv’s most prominent champions of historic buildings, a cultural activist, was killed in 2022 while engaged in the frontline. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were persevering in his important preservation work. There were initially 3,500 stone mansions in Kyiv, many built for the city’s successful business magnates. Only 80 of their period doors remain, she said.

“It wasn’t aerial bombardments that destroyed 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 continued. Chudna recently helped to restore a full of character vine-clad house built in 1910, which serves as the headquarters of her cultural organization and doubles 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 go on for 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 “very cool and a little bit cold”. Why do many residents not cherish the past? “Unfortunately they do not have education and taste. It’s all about business. We are trying as a country to integrate with the west. But we are still a way off from such cultural awareness,” he said. Previous ways of thinking remained, with people reluctant to take personal responsibility for their built surroundings, he added.

Therapy in Action

Some buildings are crumbling because of official neglect. Chudna showed a once-magical villa tucked away behind a modern hospital. Its roof had collapsed; pigeons made their home among its shattered windows; refuse lay under a storybook tower. “Frequently we are unsuccessful,” she acknowledged. “Preservation work is a form of healing for us. We are trying to save all this heritage and aesthetic value.”

In the face of war and commercial interests, these volunteers continue their work, one facade at a time, arguing that to rebuild a city’s heart, you must first protect its stones.