Safeguarding Kyiv's Architectural Legacy: An Urban Center Rebuilding Its Foundations in the Shadow of Conflict.

Lesia Danylenko beamed with pride as she displayed her freshly fitted front door. Local helpers had playfully nicknamed its ornate transom window the “crescent roll”, a playful reference to its arched shape. “Personally, I believe it’s more of a peafowl,” she remarked, appreciating its branch-like features. The refurbishment initiative at one of Kyiv’s pre-World War I art nouveau houses was funded through residents, who celebrated with two impromptu pavement parties.

It was also an demonstration of opposition towards a foreign power, she elaborated: “We strive to live like ordinary people regardless of the war. It’s about shaping our life in the most positive way. Fear does not drive us of remaining in our country. The possibility to emigrate existed, moving away to Italy. On the contrary, I’m here. The new entrance symbolizes our dedication to our homeland.”

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

Preserving Kyiv’s architectural heritage seems strange at a period when aerial assaults regularly target the capital, causing death and destruction. Since the start of the current year, bombing campaigns have been significantly intensified. After each strike, workers cover blown-out windows with plywood and try, where possible, to secure residential buildings.

Within the Explosions, a Battle for Identity

In the midst of war, a collective of activists has been striving to conserve 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 erected in 1906 and was first the home of a prosperous fur dealer. Its exterior is embellished with horse chestnut leaves and intricate camomile flowers.

“They are symbols of Kyiv. These properties are increasingly scarce in the present day,” Danylenko said. The mansion was designed by an architect of Central European origin. Several other buildings in the vicinity display similar art nouveau features, including asymmetry – with a gothic tower on one side and a projection on the other. One popular house in the area boasts two sullen white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a demonic figure.

Several Threats to Legacy

But armed conflict is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face profit-driven developers who demolish protected buildings, corrupt officials and a administrative body apathetic or opposed to the city’s vast architectural history. The severe winter climate presents another challenge.

“Kyiv is a city where wealth dictates. We lack real political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He claimed the city’s mayor was allied with many of the developers who destroy important houses. Perov further alleged that the concept 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 public-spirited activists who once championed older properties were now engaged in combat or had been lost. The ongoing conflict meant that all citizens was facing monetary strain, he added, including judicial figures who mysteriously ruled in favour of dubious new-build schemes. “The longer this goes on the more we see decline of our society and governing institutions,” he argued.

Loss and Neglect

One glaring demolition site is in the riverside Podil neighbourhood. The street was the site of classical 19th-century houses. A developer who acquired the plot had pledged to preserve its charming brick facade. Shortly following the 2022 invasion, diggers demolished it. Recently, a crane excavated foundations for a new retail and office development, observed by a surly security guard.

Anatolii Pohorily, a heritage supporter, said there was faint chance 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, reconstructing its primary street after the second world war so it could allow for large-scale parades.

Continuing the Work

One of Kyiv’s most notable advocates of historic buildings, a tour guide and blogger, was fell in 2022 while serving in a eastern city. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were persevering in his crucial preservation work. There were originally 3,500 stone mansions in Kyiv, many erected for the city’s prosperous industrialists. Only 80 of their period doors survived, she said.

“It wasn’t aerial bombardments that eliminated them. It was us,” she said with regret. “The war could continue for another 20 years. If we neglect architecture now little will be left,” she continued. Chudna recently helped to restore a characterful ivy-draped house built in 1910, which acts as the headquarters of her cultural organization and operates as a film set and museum. The property has a new crimson entrance 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 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 locals not cherish the past? “Regrettably they do not have education and taste. It’s all about business. We are attempting as a country to go to the west. But we are still a way off from that standard,” he said. Previous ways of thinking remained, with people hesitant to take personal responsibility for their architectural setting, he added.

Therapy in Preservation

Some buildings are collapsing because of bureaucratic indifference. Chudna showed a once-magical villa tucked away behind a modern hospital. Its roof had caved in; pigeons made their home among its smashed windows; refuse lay under a fairytale tower. “Frequently we are unsuccessful,” she conceded. “This activity is a form of healing for us. We are trying to save all this history and beauty.”

In the face of war and commercial interests, these activists continue their work, one building at a time, stating that to preserve a city’s identity, you must first cherish its stones.