Preserving the Capital's Architectural Legacy: A City Reconstructing Its Foundations Under the Threat of War.

Lesia Danylenko beamed with pride as she displayed her newly installed front door. The restoration team had playfully nicknamed its graceful transom window the “crescent roll”, a whimsical nod to its bowed shape. “I think it’s more of a peafowl,” she stated, appreciating its tree limb-inspired details. The refurbishment initiative at one of Kyiv’s pre-World War I art nouveau houses was made possible by residents, who marked the occasion with several impromptu pavement parties.

It was also an demonstration of resistance towards an invading force, she elaborated: “We strive to live like ordinary people regardless of the war. It’s about shaping our life in the most positive way. We have no fear of staying in our homeland. I could have left, moving away to another European nation. Instead, I’m here. The new entrance shows our allegiance to our homeland.”

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

Protecting Kyiv’s architectural heritage could be considered unusual at a time when drone attacks frequently hit the capital, causing death and destruction. Since the beginning of the current year, aerial raids have been notably increased. After each assault, workers seal blown-out windows with plywood and endeavor, where possible, to salvage residential buildings.

Among the Conflict, a Fight for Beauty

Despite the violence, a group of activists has been working to preserve the city’s deteriorating mansions, built in a whimsical 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 prosperous fur dealer. Its exterior is embellished with horse chestnut leaves and intricate camomile flowers.

“These buildings represent symbols of Kyiv. These properties are uncommon today,” Danylenko said. The mansion was designed by an architect of Austrian-German origin. Several other buildings nearby showcase comparable art nouveau characteristics, including asymmetry – with a pointed turret on one side and a turret on the other. One much-loved house in the area features two sullen white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a imp.

Multiple Dangers to Heritage

But armed conflict is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face unprincipled developers who knock down protected buildings, dishonest officials and a political leadership apathetic or opposed to the city’s profound architectural history. The bitter winter climate imposes another burden.

“Kyiv is a city where money wins. We don’t have real political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He alleged the city’s leadership was allied with many of the developers who bulldoze important houses. Perov further alleged that the vision for the capital is reminiscent of a previous decade. The mayor rejects these claims, attributing them from political rivals.

Perov said many of the public-spirited activists who once protected older properties were now engaged in combat or had been killed. The ongoing conflict meant that all citizens was facing financial problems, he added, including those in the legal system who inexplicably ruled in favour of dubious new-build schemes. “The longer this goes on the more we see decline of our society and governing institutions,” he contended.

Loss and Abandonment

One glaring location of loss is in the waterside Podil neighbourhood. The street was lined with classical 19th-century houses. A developer who acquired the plot had pledged to preserve its attractive brick facade. A day after the 2022 invasion, excavators demolished it. Recently, a crane excavated foundations for a new shopping and business centre, monitored by a unfriendly security guard.

Anatolii Pohorily, a heritage supporter, said there was not much hope for the remaining blue-green houses on the site. Sometimes developers destroyed old properties while stating they were doing “archaeological research”, 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 facilitate military vehicles.

Continuing the Work

One of Kyiv’s most renowned defenders of historic buildings, a cultural activist, was killed in 2022 while engaged in a contested area. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were persevering in his important preservation work. There were initially 3,500 masonry mansions in Kyiv, many erected for the city’s wealthy business magnates. Only 80 of their period doors remain, she said.

“It was not aerial bombardments that eliminated them. It was us,” she lamented. “The war could last another 20 years. If we fail to protect architecture now not a thing will be left,” she emphasized. Chudna recently helped to restore a unique ivy-draped house built in 1910, which serves as the headquarters of her cultural organization and doubles 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 go on for 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 “quite special and a little bit cold”. Why do many residents not value the past? “Unfortunately they do not have education and taste. It’s all about business. We are trying as a country to go to the west. But we are still some distance away from civilization,” he said. Previous ways of thinking lingered, with people unwilling to take personal responsibility for their built surroundings, he added.

Resilience in Preservation

Some buildings are falling apart because of bureaucratic indifference. Chudna indicated a once-magical villa hidden behind a modern hospital. Its roof had collapsed; pigeons roosted among its shattered windows; debris lay under a whimsical tower. “Often we don’t win,” she conceded. “This activity is a coping mechanism for us. We are striving to save all this heritage and aesthetic value.”

In the face of conflict and development pressures, these volunteers continue their work, one door at a time, stating that to preserve a city’s soul, you must first save its walls.