Safeguarding Kyiv's Heritage: An Urban Center Reconstructing Itself Amidst the Onslaught of Conflict.

Lesia Danylenko showed off with satisfaction her newly installed front door. The restoration team had playfully nicknamed its elegant transom window the “pastry”, a whimsical nod to its curved shape. “In my opinion it’s more of a showy bird,” she commented, appreciating its twig-detailed features. The refurbishment initiative at one of Kyiv’s pre-World War I art nouveau houses was funded through residents, who commemorated the work with several lively pavement parties.

It was also an act of resistance in the face of a foreign power, she elaborated: “We strive to live like everyday people regardless of the war. It’s about shaping our life in the most positive way. We’re not afraid of remaining in our homeland. I had the option to depart, moving away to another European nation. 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 organizing our life in the best possible way.”

Preserving Kyiv’s built legacy may appear strange at a period when drone attacks frequently hit the capital, resulting in death and destruction. Since the start of the current year, bombing campaigns have been significantly intensified. After each assault, workers seal shattered windows with plywood and endeavor, where possible, to save residential buildings.

Within the Bombs, a Battle for History

In the midst of war, a band of activists has been working to preserve the city’s decaying mansions, built in a playful style known as Ukrainian modernism. Danylenko’s house is in the central Shevchenkivskyi district. It was constructed in 1906 and was originally the home of a affluent fur dealer. Its exterior is decorated with horse chestnut leaves and fine camomile flowers.

“These structures stand as 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 close by showcase comparable art nouveau elements, including asymmetry – with a medieval spire on one side and a small tower on the other. One much-loved house in the area displays two forlorn white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a devil.

Several Dangers to History

But military aggression is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face unscrupulous developers who demolish listed buildings, unethical officials and a political leadership apathetic or hostile to the city’s vast architectural history. The bitter winter climate imposes another burden.

“Kyiv is a city where capital prevails. We lack genuine political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He alleged the city’s mayor was closely associated with many of the developers who bulldoze important houses. Perov further alleged that the concept for the capital comes straight out of a previous decade. The mayor rejects these claims, stating they come from political rivals.

Perov said many of the public-spirited activists who once protected older properties were now fighting on the frontline or had been lost. The lengthy conflict meant that the entire society was facing economic hardship, he added, including judicial figures who mysteriously ruled in favour of suspect new-build schemes. “The longer this goes on the more we see deterioration of our society and public institutions,” he remarked.

Destruction and Disregard

One egregious demolition site is in the historic Podil neighbourhood. The street was the site of classical 19th-century houses. A developer who purchased the plot had pledged to preserve its charming brick facade. Shortly following the full-scale invasion, excavators demolished it. Recently, a crane prepared foundations for a new shopping and business centre, observed by a stern security guard.

Anatolii Pohorily, a heritage supporter, said there was faint chance for the remaining blue-green houses on the site. Sometimes developers levelled old properties while asserting they were doing “historical excavation”, he said. A former political system also inflicted immense damage on the capital, redesigning its main thoroughfare after the second world war so it could accommodate large-scale parades.

Carrying the Torch

One of Kyiv’s most prominent advocates of historic buildings, a tour guide and blogger, was lost his life in 2022 while engaged in a eastern city. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were continuing his important 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 original doors survived, she said.

“It was not aerial bombardments that got rid of them. It was us,” she lamented. “The war could continue for another 20 years. If we fail to protect architecture now not a thing will be left,” she added. Chudna recently helped to restore a characterful ivy-draped 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 go on for another 20 years. If we don’t defend architecture now nothing will be left.”

The building’s tenant, artist Yurii Pikul, described his home as “quite special and a little bit cold”. Why do many citizens not value the past? “Regrettably they are without 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 that standard,” he said. Outdated ways of thinking persisted, with people hesitant to take personal responsibility for their architectural setting, he added.

Resilience in Action

Some buildings are collapsing because of bureaucratic indifference. Chudna indicated a once-magical villa tucked away behind a modern hospital. Its roof had fallen; pigeons roosted among its smashed windows; refuse lay under a fairytale tower. “Often we don’t win,” she conceded. “This activity is therapy for us. We are striving to save all this history and aesthetic value.”

In the face of destruction and commercial interests, these citizens continue their work, one building at a time, stating that to rebuild a city’s identity, you must first cherish its walls.