Protecting Kyiv's Heritage: A City Rebuilding Its Foundations Under the Threat of Conflict.

Lesia Danylenko proudly presented her newly installed front door. The restoration team had given the moniker its ornate transom window the “pastry”, a whimsical nod to its curved shape. “In my opinion it’s more of a peacock,” she remarked, gazing at its twig-detailed features. The refurbishment initiative at one of Kyiv’s turn-of-the-century art nouveau houses was funded through residents, who commemorated the work with two impromptu pavement parties.

It was also an expression of resistance against a neighboring state, she elaborated: “Our aim is to live like everyday people regardless of the war. It’s about arranging our life in the most positive way. Fear does not drive us of living in Ukraine. I had the option to depart, relocating to a foreign land. On the contrary, I’m here. The new entrance shows our allegiance to our homeland.”

“We are trying to live like ordinary people despite the war. It’s about arranging our life in the optimal way.”

Preserving Kyiv’s historic buildings seems paradoxical at a time when aerial assaults routinely fall the capital, resulting in death and destruction. Since the onset of the current year, bombing campaigns have been notably increased. After each assault, workers seal blown-out windows with plywood and endeavor, where possible, to save residential buildings.

Among the Bombs, a Battle for Beauty

In the midst of war, a group of activists has been attempting to conserve the city’s decaying mansions, built in a whimsical style known as Ukrainian modernism. Danylenko’s house is in the historic Shevchenkivskyi district. It was built in 1906 and was first the home of a affluent fur dealer. Its facade is embellished with horse chestnut leaves and fine camomile flowers.

“These structures stand as symbols of Kyiv. These properties are quite rare today,” Danylenko noted. The building was designed by an architect of Central European origin. Several other buildings in the vicinity exhibit similar art nouveau elements, including an irregular shape – with a pointed turret on one side and a projection on the other. One popular house in the area displays two unhappy white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a devil.

Several Dangers to Heritage

But armed conflict is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face profit-driven developers who raze historically significant buildings, dishonest officials and a governing class indifferent or opposed to the city’s rich architectural history. The bitter winter climate imposes another challenge.

“Kyiv is a city where capital prevails. We are missing substantive political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He asserted the city’s leadership was friends with many of the developers who destroy important houses. Perov added that the concept for the capital is reminiscent of a bygone era. The mayor denies these claims, attributing them from political rivals.

Perov said many of the public-spirited activists who once defended older properties were now fighting on the frontline or had been fallen. The ongoing conflict meant that the entire society was facing monetary strain, he added, including those in the legal system who curiously ruled in favour of suspect new-build schemes. “The longer this persists the more we see decline of our society and governing institutions,” he contended.

Demolition and Neglect

One egregious location of loss is in the riverside Podil neighbourhood. The street was lined with classical 19th-century houses. A developer who obtained the plot had committed to preserve its attractive brick facade. Shortly following the full-scale invasion, diggers tore it down. 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 little optimism for the remaining turquoise-painted 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 allow for large-scale parades.

Upholding the Legacy

One of Kyiv’s most prominent champions of historic buildings, a tour guide and blogger, was killed in 2022 while serving in the frontline. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were carrying on his important preservation work. There were originally 3,500 brick-built mansions in Kyiv, many built for the city’s wealthy industrialists. Only 80 of their original doors are still in existence, she said.

“It wasn’t aerial bombardments that destroyed them. It was us,” she said with regret. “The war could go on for another 20 years. If we fail to protect architecture now little will be left,” she continued. Chudna recently helped to restore a characterful vine-clad 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 vermilion portal and original-style railings; inside is a historic washroom and antique mirrors.

“The war could last another 20 years. If we neglect architecture now not a thing will be left.”

The building’s tenant, artist Yurii Pikul, described his home as “incredibly atmospheric and a little bit cold”. Why do many residents not appreciate the past? “Unfortunately 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 not yet close from civilization,” he said. Previous ways of thinking remained, with people unwilling to take personal responsibility for their architectural setting, he added.

Therapy in Action

Some buildings are crumbling because of official neglect. Chudna pointed to a once-magical villa concealed behind a modern hospital. Its roof had collapsed; pigeons nested among its shattered windows; debris lay under a storybook tower. “Many times we are unsuccessful,” she admitted. “Restoration is therapy for us. We are attempting to save all this heritage and aesthetic value.”

In the face of war and neglect, these volunteers continue their work, one building at a time, believing that to rebuild a city’s soul, you must first save its stones.