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

Lesia Danylenko showed off with satisfaction her recently completed front door. Volunteers had given the moniker its graceful transom window the “crescent roll”, a playful reference to its curved shape. “Personally, I believe it’s more of a peacock,” she commented, appreciating its branch-like features. The renovation effort at one of Kyiv’s early 20th-century art nouveau houses was funded through residents, who marked the occasion with two neighbourhood pavement parties.

It was also an expression of resistance against a foreign power, she explained: “Our aim is to live like ordinary people despite the war. It’s about shaping our life in the most positive way. We’re not afraid of staying in our country. I could have left, relocating to Italy. On the contrary, I’m here. The new entrance shows our allegiance to our homeland.”

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

Protecting Kyiv’s historic buildings seems paradoxical at a time when missile strikes regularly target the capital, resulting in death and destruction. Since the beginning of the current year, aerial raids have been significantly intensified. After each strike, workers board up shattered windows with plywood and try, where possible, to salvage residential buildings.

Among the Bombs, a Fight for Beauty

In the midst of war, a band 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 downtown Shevchenkivskyi district. It was constructed in 1906 and was initially the home of a wealthy fur dealer. Its exterior is embellished with horse chestnut leaves and fine camomile flowers.

“They are symbols of Kyiv. These properties are increasingly scarce today,” Danylenko said. The residence was designed by an architect of Central European origin. Several other buildings nearby showcase similar art nouveau characteristics, including asymmetry – with a medieval spire on one side and a projection on the other. One beloved house in the area boasts two sullen white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a devil.

Several Challenges to Legacy

But armed conflict is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face unprincipled developers who raze historically significant buildings, corrupt officials and a political leadership apathetic or hostile to the city’s vast architectural history. The severe winter climate presents another burden.

“Kyiv is a city where wealth dictates. We are missing substantive political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He asserted the city’s mayor was closely associated with many of the developers who flatten important houses. Perov added that the plan for the capital comes straight out of a previous decade. The mayor denies these claims, attributing them 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 protracted conflict meant that everyone was facing economic hardship, he added, including those in the legal system who curiously ruled in favour of dubious new-build schemes. “The longer this continues the more we see degradation of our society and state bodies,” he contended.

Loss and Neglect

One egregious location of loss is in the riverside Podil neighbourhood. The street was the site of classical 19th-century houses. A developer who purchased the plot had committed to preserve its attractive brick facade. Shortly following the onset of major hostilities, excavators razed it to the ground. Recently, a crane excavated foundations for a new commercial complex, 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 demolished old properties while asserting they were doing “scientific study”, he said. A former political system also caused immense damage on the capital, reconstructing its primary street after the second world war so it could accommodate military vehicles.

Carrying the Torch

One of Kyiv’s most notable defenders of historic buildings, a tour guide and blogger, was lost his life in 2022 while fighting in the frontline. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were persevering in his crucial preservation work. There were originally 3,500 masonry mansions in Kyiv, many erected for the city’s wealthy entrepreneurs. Only 80 of their period doors remain, she said.

“It was not aerial bombardments that destroyed them. It was us,” she said with regret. “The war could last another 20 years. If we don’t defend architecture now nothing will be left,” she emphasized. Chudna recently helped to restore a unique vine-clad house built in 1910, which acts as the headquarters of her cultural organization and doubles as a film set and museum. The property has a new crimson entrance and original-style railings; inside is a historic washroom and antique mirrors.

“The war could continue for another 20 years. If we fail to protect architecture now little will be left.”

The building’s occupant, artist Yurii Pikul, described his home as “quite special and a little bit cold”. Why do many residents not value the past? “Unfortunately they are without 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. Previous ways of thinking remained, with people reluctant to take personal responsibility for their architectural setting, he added.

Therapy in Preservation

Some buildings are falling apart because of official neglect. Chudna pointed to a once-magical villa concealed behind a modern hospital. Its roof had collapsed; pigeons roosted among its broken windows; refuse lay under a fairytale tower. “Many times we lose the battle,” she conceded. “Preservation work is a coping mechanism for us. We are striving to save all this history and splendour.”

In the face of war and development pressures, these activists continue their work, one building at a time, arguing that to rebuild a city’s soul, you must first protect its history.