Safeguarding Kyiv's Heritage: A City Reconstructing Its Foundations Under the Threat of Conflict.

Lesia Danylenko proudly presented her freshly fitted front door. Volunteers had playfully nicknamed its elegant transom window the “croissant”, a playful reference to its bowed shape. “In my opinion it’s more of a showy bird,” she remarked, admiring its tree limb-inspired details. The refurbishment initiative at one of Kyiv’s turn-of-the-century art nouveau houses was supported by residents, who commemorated the work with several lively pavement parties.

It was also an act of opposition towards a neighboring state, she explained: “We strive to live like normal people in spite of the war. It’s about arranging our life in the best possible way. We have no fear of remaining in Ukraine. The possibility to emigrate existed, moving away to a foreign land. Instead, I’m here. The new entrance represents our commitment to our homeland.”

“We strive to live like everyday people in spite of the war. It’s about arranging our life in the most positive way.”

Preserving Kyiv’s architectural heritage could be considered unusual at a time when missile strikes regularly target the capital, causing death and destruction. Since the onset of the current year, aerial raids have been notably increased. After each attack, workers cover blown-out windows with plywood and try, where possible, to secure residential buildings.

Amid the Conflict, a Battle for Identity

In the midst of war, a band of activists has been working to preserve the city’s crumbling 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 initially the home of a wealthy fur dealer. Its facade is adorned with horse chestnut leaves and delicate camomile flowers.

“These buildings represent symbols of Kyiv. These properties are increasingly scarce in the present day,” Danylenko noted. The mansion was designed by a designer of Austrian-German origin. Several other buildings in the vicinity exhibit analogous art nouveau elements, including a lack of symmetry – with a medieval spire on one side and a small tower on the other. One popular house in the area displays two forlorn white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a devil.

Dual Threats to Heritage

But armed conflict is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face unscrupulous developers who raze historically significant buildings, dishonest officials and a governing class apathetic or hostile to the city’s vast architectural history. The severe winter climate adds another challenge.

“Kyiv is a city where money wins. We are missing substantive political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He claimed the city’s mayor was closely associated with many of the developers who destroy important houses. Perov stated that the concept for the capital comes straight out of a bygone era. The mayor has refuted these claims, stating they come from political rivals.

Perov said many of the public-spirited activists who once defended older properties were now serving in the military or had been fallen. The protracted conflict meant that the entire society was facing monetary strain, he added, including judicial figures who mysteriously ruled in favour of suspect new-build schemes. “The longer this continues the more we see degradation of our society and governing institutions,” he remarked.

Loss and Abandonment

One egregious demolition site is in the riverside Podil neighbourhood. The street was lined with classical 19th-century houses. A developer who purchased the plot had committed to preserve its picturesque brick facade. A day after the 2022 invasion, heavy machinery demolished it. Recently, a crane dug foundations for a new commercial complex, monitored by a surly security guard.

Anatolii Pohorily, a heritage supporter, said there was not much hope for the remaining coloured houses on the site. Sometimes developers demolished old properties while asserting they were doing “historical excavation”, he said. A 20th-century empire also wrought immense damage on the capital, reconstructing its central boulevard after the second world war so it could accommodate military vehicles.

Carrying the Torch

One of Kyiv’s most prominent advocates of historic buildings, a tour guide and blogger, was fell in 2022 while fighting in a eastern city. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were persevering in his important preservation work. There were at one time 3,500 brick-built mansions in Kyiv, many erected for the city’s wealthy business magnates. Only 80 of their authentic doors survived, she said.

“It was not external attacks that destroyed them. It was us,” she admitted sadly. “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 full of character creeper-covered house built in 1910, which acts as the headquarters of her cultural organization and also serves as a film set and museum. The property has a new crimson entrance and period-correct railings; inside is a vintage sanitary facility and antique mirrors.

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

The building’s tenant, artist Yurii Pikul, described his home as “very cool and a little bit cold”. Why do many citizens not cherish the past? “Regrettably they are without education and taste. It’s all about business. We are trying as a country to move towards the west. But we are still some distance away from such cultural awareness,” he said. Soviet-era ways of thinking lingered, with people hesitant to take personal responsibility for their urban environment, he added.

Therapy in Action

Some buildings are collapsing because of institutional abandonment. Chudna pointed to a once-magical villa concealed behind a modern hospital. Its roof had collapsed; pigeons made their home among its smashed windows; rubbish lay under a storybook tower. “Frequently we are unsuccessful,” she conceded. “Preservation work is therapy for us. We are trying to save all this heritage and beauty.”

In the face of war and development pressures, these activists continue their work, one door at a time, arguing that to preserve a city’s heart, you must first save its stones.