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

Lesia Danylenko proudly presented her newly installed front door. Volunteers had given the moniker its elegant transom window the “crescent roll”, a whimsical nod to its arched shape. “Personally, I believe it’s more of a peafowl,” she commented, appreciating its twig-detailed features. The renovation effort at one of Kyiv’s early 20th-century art nouveau houses was funded through residents, who marked the occasion with several neighbourhood pavement parties.

It was also an act of opposition against a foreign power, she clarified: “We strive to live like ordinary people regardless of the war. It’s about arranging our life in the best possible way. We’re not afraid of remaining in our country. The possibility to emigrate existed, starting anew to Italy. Conversely, I’m here. The new entrance shows our dedication to our homeland.”

“Our aim is to live like ordinary people regardless of the war. It’s about arranging our life in the most positive way.”

Preserving Kyiv’s architectural heritage could be considered paradoxical at a period when drone attacks regularly target the capital, resulting in death and destruction. Since the start of the current year, bombing campaigns have been dramatically stepped up. After each strike, workers board up shattered windows with plywood and attempt, where possible, to salvage residential buildings.

Within the Conflict, a Fight for Identity

Amid the bombs, a band of activists has been working to preserve the city’s crumbling mansions, built in a distinctive style known as Ukrainian modernism. Danylenko’s house is in the historic Shevchenkivskyi district. It was built in 1906 and was originally the home of a prosperous fur dealer. Its facade is decorated with horse chestnut leaves and fine camomile flowers.

“They are symbols of Kyiv. These properties are uncommon in the present day,” Danylenko noted. The building was designed by a designer of Austrian-German origin. Several other buildings in the vicinity showcase similar art nouveau elements, including a lack of symmetry – with a pointed turret 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 demonic figure.

Multiple Challenges to History

But external attacks is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face unprincipled developers who knock down listed buildings, unethical officials and a political leadership indifferent or hostile to the city’s rich architectural history. The severe winter climate imposes another challenge.

“Kyiv is a city where capital prevails. We lack substantive political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He asserted the city’s mayor was friends with many of the developers who destroy important houses. Perov further alleged that the vision for the capital is reminiscent of a different time. The mayor has refuted these claims, attributing them from political rivals.

Perov said many of the civically minded activists who once championed older properties were now engaged in combat or had been killed. The protracted conflict meant that everyone was facing monetary strain, he added, including those in the legal system who inexplicably ruled in favour of suspect new-build schemes. “The longer this persists the more we see decline of our society and state bodies,” he remarked.

Demolition and Disregard

One egregious demolition site is in the riverside Podil neighbourhood. The street was the site of classical 19th-century houses. A developer who obtained the plot had committed to preserve its attractive brick facade. In the immediate aftermath of the full-scale invasion, heavy machinery razed it to the ground. Recently, a crane dug 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 demolished old properties while claiming they were doing “historical excavation”, he said. A previous regime also inflicted immense damage on the capital, redesigning its main thoroughfare after the second world war so it could accommodate military vehicles.

Carrying the Torch

One of Kyiv’s most prominent champions of historic buildings, a tour guide and blogger, was killed in 2022 while fighting in the frontline. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were carrying on his important preservation work. There were at one time 3,500 masonry mansions in Kyiv, many built for the city’s successful industrialists. Only 80 of their period doors remain, she said.

“It wasn’t foreign rockets that eliminated them. It was us,” she admitted sadly. “The war could continue for another 20 years. If we don’t defend architecture now little will be left,” she added. Chudna recently helped to restore a full of character ivy-draped house built in 1910, which functions as the headquarters of her cultural organization and doubles 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 neglect 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 citizens not appreciate the past? “Sadly they do not have 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 civilization,” he said. Soviet-era ways of thinking persisted, with people unwilling to take personal responsibility for their urban environment, he added.

Hope in Preservation

Some buildings are collapsing because of bureaucratic indifference. Chudna showed a once-magical villa concealed behind a modern hospital. Its roof had caved in; pigeons roosted among its broken windows; rubbish lay under a storybook tower. “Often we lose the battle,” she acknowledged. “Preservation work is a coping mechanism for us. We are trying to save all this heritage and aesthetic value.”

In the face of destruction and commercial interests, these volunteers continue their work, one facade at a time, believing that to preserve a city’s soul, you must first cherish its stones.