Safeguarding Kyiv's Architectural Legacy: An Urban Center Reconstructing Itself in the Shadow of Conflict.

Lesia Danylenko beamed with pride as she displayed her recently completed front door. Volunteers had given the moniker its graceful transom window the “pastry”, a whimsical nod to its bowed shape. “Personally, I believe it’s more of a showy bird,” she remarked, admiring its tree limb-inspired details. The restoration project at one of Kyiv’s pre-World War I art nouveau houses was supported by residents, who celebrated with two impromptu pavement parties.

It was also an demonstration of defiance against a neighboring state, she elaborated: “Our aim is 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 living in our country. I could have left, starting anew to a foreign land. On the contrary, I’m here. The new entrance shows our dedication to our homeland.”

“Our aim is to live like normal people despite the war. It’s about arranging our life in the best possible way.”

Safeguarding Kyiv’s built legacy may appear unusual at a period when drone attacks routinely fall the capital, resulting in death and destruction. Since the onset of the current year, bombing campaigns have been notably increased. After each attack, workers seal broken windows with plywood and try, where possible, to save residential buildings.

Among the Conflict, a Fight for Identity

Amid the bombs, a collective of activists has been working to preserve the city’s decaying mansions, built in a distinctive 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 facade is adorned with horse chestnut leaves and fine camomile flowers.

“These buildings represent symbols of Kyiv. These properties are increasingly scarce today,” Danylenko said. The residence was designed by an architect of Austrian-German origin. Several other buildings close by display similar art nouveau elements, including a lack of symmetry – with a pointed turret on one side and a projection on the other. One beloved house in the area displays two unhappy white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a imp.

Dual Challenges to History

But external attacks is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face profit-driven developers who raze listed buildings, unethical officials and a governing class indifferent or opposed to the city’s vast architectural history. The severe winter climate adds another challenge.

“Kyiv is a city where wealth dictates. We lack genuine political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He claimed the city’s leadership was closely associated with many of the developers who destroy important houses. Perov further alleged that the vision for the capital harks back to a bygone era. The mayor rejects these claims, attributing them from political rivals.

Perov said many of the civically minded activists who once protected older properties were now fighting on the frontline or had been killed. The lengthy conflict meant that everyone was facing financial problems, he added, including those in the legal system who curiously ruled in favour of questionable new-build schemes. “The longer this goes on the more we see decline of our society and governing institutions,” he contended.

Destruction and Disregard

One glaring example of destruction is in the waterside Podil neighbourhood. The street was lined with classical 19th-century houses. A developer who acquired the plot had committed to preserve its attractive brick facade. Shortly following the full-scale invasion, excavators razed it to the ground. Recently, a crane prepared foundations for a new retail and office development, observed by a unfriendly 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 previous regime also wrought immense damage on the capital, redesigning its main thoroughfare after the second world war so it could facilitate large-scale parades.

Continuing the Work

One of Kyiv’s most prominent advocates of historic buildings, a heritage expert, was lost his life in 2022 while serving in the frontline. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were persevering in his vital preservation work. There were initially 3,500 stone mansions in Kyiv, many erected for the city’s wealthy entrepreneurs. Only 80 of their original doors are still in existence, she said.

“It was not external attacks that eliminated them. It was us,” she admitted sadly. “The war could last another 20 years. If we don’t defend architecture now nothing 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 crimson entrance and authentic railings; inside is a period bathroom and antique mirrors.

“The war could continue 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 “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 such cultural awareness,” he said. Outdated ways of thinking remained, with people reluctant to take personal responsibility for their built surroundings, he added.

Resilience in Preservation

Some buildings are collapsing because of bureaucratic indifference. Chudna showed a once-magical villa concealed behind a modern hospital. Its roof had fallen; pigeons nested among its broken windows; rubbish lay under a fairytale tower. “Frequently we are unsuccessful,” she acknowledged. “Restoration is therapy for us. We are attempting to save all this history and aesthetic value.”

In the face of destruction and development pressures, these volunteers continue their work, one building at a time, stating that to preserve a city’s identity, you must first cherish its stones.