Preserving Kyiv's Architectural Legacy: A City Rebuilding Its Foundations Under the Threat of War.

Lesia Danylenko beamed with pride as she displayed her newly installed front door. Volunteers had affectionately dubbed its elegant transom window the “croissant”, a whimsical nod to its bowed shape. “I think it’s more of a peafowl,” she remarked, gazing at its tree limb-inspired features. The renovation effort at one of Kyiv’s turn-of-the-century art nouveau houses was made possible by residents, who commemorated the work with several lively pavement parties.

It was also an demonstration of opposition in the face of a neighboring state, she elaborated: “We are trying to live like normal people in spite of the war. It’s about shaping our life in the optimal way. We have no fear of staying in Ukraine. I had the option to depart, moving away to a foreign land. On the contrary, I’m here. The new entrance symbolizes our commitment to our homeland.”

“We strive to live like everyday people regardless of the war. It’s about arranging our life in the most positive way.”

Protecting Kyiv’s built legacy may appear unusual at a period when missile strikes routinely fall the capital, bringing death and destruction. Since the beginning of the current year, aerial raids have been dramatically stepped up. After each strike, workers cover shattered windows with plywood and attempt, where possible, to save residential buildings.

Within the Conflict, a Battle for History

Despite the violence, a group of activists has been striving to save the city’s deteriorating mansions, built in a distinctive style known as Ukrainian modernism. Danylenko’s house is in the downtown Shevchenkivskyi district. It was built in 1906 and was first the home of a affluent fur dealer. Its outer walls is decorated with horse chestnut leaves and delicate camomile flowers.

“They are symbols of Kyiv. These properties are quite rare in the present day,” Danylenko noted. The mansion was designed by an architect of Central European origin. Several other buildings in the vicinity showcase analogous art nouveau characteristics, including an irregular shape – with a pointed turret on one side and a small tower on the other. One much-loved house in the area boasts two sullen white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a devil.

Several Threats to History

But external attacks is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face unscrupulous developers who knock down listed buildings, dishonest officials and a governing class indifferent or resistant to the city’s vast architectural history. The severe winter climate adds another challenge.

“Kyiv is a city where wealth dictates. We are missing genuine political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He alleged the city’s leadership was friends with many of the developers who destroy important houses. Perov further alleged that the plan for the capital is reminiscent of a previous decade. The mayor denies these claims, stating they come from political rivals.

Perov said many of the community-oriented 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 inexplicably ruled in favour of dubious new-build schemes. “The longer this goes on the more we see decline of our society and public institutions,” he argued.

Destruction and Disregard

One notorious location of loss is in the waterside Podil neighbourhood. The street was lined with classical 19th-century houses. A developer who acquired the plot had agreed to preserve its charming brick facade. In the immediate aftermath of the 2022 invasion, diggers tore it down. Recently, a crane prepared foundations for a new shopping and business centre, watched 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 asserting they were doing “scientific study”, he said. A former political system also inflicted immense damage on the capital, redesigning its primary street after the second world war so it could allow for official processions.

Upholding the Legacy

One of Kyiv’s most prominent defenders of historic buildings, a heritage expert, was killed in 2022 while serving in a contested area. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were carrying on his vital preservation work. There were at one time 3,500 stone mansions in Kyiv, many built for the city’s successful business magnates. Only 80 of their authentic doors survived, she said.

“It wasn’t aerial bombardments that eliminated them. It was us,” she admitted sadly. “The war could go on for another 20 years. If we neglect architecture now not a thing will be left,” she continued. Chudna recently helped to restore a full of character creeper-covered house built in 1910, which functions 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 little will be left.”

The building’s tenant, artist Yurii Pikul, described his home as “incredibly atmospheric and a little bit cold”. Why do many locals not cherish the past? “Sadly they do not have education and taste. It’s all about business. We are striving as a country to integrate with the west. But we are still not yet close from civilization,” he said. Soviet-era ways of thinking persisted, with people unwilling to take personal responsibility for their architectural setting, he added.

Therapy in Preservation

Some buildings are crumbling because of institutional abandonment. Chudna showed a once-magical villa tucked away behind a modern hospital. Its roof had caved in; pigeons nested among its broken windows; rubbish lay under a fairytale tower. “Often we don’t win,” she admitted. “Restoration is therapy for us. We are striving to save all this history and aesthetic value.”

In the face of conflict and neglect, these citizens continue their work, one building at a time, stating that to save a city’s identity, you must first save its stones.