Safeguarding the Capital's Architectural Legacy: An Urban Center Reconstructing Itself Under the Threat of War.

Lesia Danylenko showed off with satisfaction her newly installed front door. Volunteers had given the moniker its graceful transom window the “pastry”, a playful reference to its arched shape. “Personally, I believe it’s more of a peafowl,” she remarked, appreciating its twig-detailed details. The renovation effort at one of Kyiv’s pre-World War I art nouveau houses was supported by residents, who commemorated the work with several neighbourhood pavement parties.

It was also an expression of defiance in the face of an invading force, she clarified: “We are trying to live like normal people in spite of the war. It’s about shaping our life in the most positive way. We’re not afraid of living in our country. I had the option to depart, starting anew to a foreign land. On the contrary, I’m here. The new entrance represents our allegiance to our homeland.”

“We are trying to live like ordinary people regardless of the war. It’s about shaping our life in the best possible way.”

Safeguarding Kyiv’s built legacy may appear unusual at a time when aerial assaults regularly target the capital, bringing death and destruction. Since the beginning of the current year, offensive operations have been notably increased. After each strike, workers seal blown-out windows with plywood and try, where possible, to secure residential buildings.

Among the Conflict, a Fight for Beauty

In the midst of war, a collective of activists has been attempting to preserve the city’s deteriorating mansions, built in a playful style known as Ukrainian modernism. Danylenko’s house is in the downtown Shevchenkivskyi district. It was erected in 1906 and was first the home of a wealthy fur dealer. Its outer walls is decorated with horse chestnut leaves and intricate camomile flowers.

“These buildings represent symbols of Kyiv. These properties are uncommon nowadays,” Danylenko said. The mansion was designed by an architect of Central European origin. Several other buildings close by display analogous art nouveau characteristics, including a lack of symmetry – with a pointed turret on one side and a projection on the other. One much-loved house in the area displays two unhappy white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a devil.

Dual Threats to Legacy

But military aggression is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face profit-driven developers who knock down historically significant buildings, corrupt officials and a governing class indifferent or resistant to the city’s profound architectural history. The bitter winter climate imposes another challenge.

“Kyiv is a city where capital prevails. We don’t have substantive political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He claimed the city’s mayor was allied with many of the developers who bulldoze important houses. Perov added that the plan for the capital harks back to a previous decade. The mayor rejects these claims, saying they originate from political rivals.

Perov said many of the community-oriented activists who once protected older properties were now serving in the military or had been killed. The protracted conflict meant that everyone was facing monetary strain, he added, including those in the legal system who mysteriously ruled in favour of questionable new-build schemes. “The longer this continues the more we see decline of our society and public institutions,” he argued.

Demolition and Neglect

One glaring demolition site is in the waterside Podil neighbourhood. The street was lined with classical 19th-century houses. A developer who purchased the plot had committed to preserve its attractive brick facade. In the immediate aftermath of the full-scale invasion, diggers tore it down. Recently, a crane prepared foundations for a new commercial complex, watched by a unfriendly security guard.

Anatolii Pohorily, a heritage supporter, said there was little optimism for the remaining blue-green houses on the site. Sometimes developers levelled old properties while stating they were doing “archaeological research”, he said. A former political system also inflicted immense damage on the capital, reconstructing its central boulevard after the second world war so it could allow for official processions.

Carrying the Torch

One of Kyiv’s most notable defenders of historic buildings, a tour guide and blogger, was killed in 2022 while serving in a contested area. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were continuing his important preservation work. There were initially 3,500 stone mansions in Kyiv, many erected for the city’s prosperous business magnates. Only 80 of their original doors are still in existence, she said.

“It wasn’t external attacks that eliminated them. It was us,” she lamented. “The war could go on for another 20 years. If we fail to protect architecture now little will be left,” she added. Chudna recently helped to restore a characterful ivy-draped 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 red door and period-correct railings; inside is a period bathroom and antique mirrors.

“The war could continue for another 20 years. If we don’t defend architecture now not a thing will be left.”

The building’s resident, artist Yurii Pikul, described his home as “quite special and a little bit cold”. Why do many locals not appreciate the past? “Regrettably they lack education and taste. It’s all about business. We are trying as a country to move towards the west. But we are still not yet close from that standard,” he said. Previous ways of thinking persisted, with people reluctant to take personal responsibility for their urban environment, he added.

Hope in Action

Some buildings are crumbling because of bureaucratic indifference. Chudna indicated a once-magical villa concealed behind a modern hospital. Its roof had fallen; pigeons roosted among its smashed windows; refuse lay under a storybook tower. “Many times we are unsuccessful,” she conceded. “This activity is a coping mechanism for us. We are trying to save all this heritage and splendour.”

In the face of destruction and development pressures, these citizens continue their work, one building at a time, arguing that to rebuild a city’s soul, you must first protect its stones.