Protecting the Capital's Heritage: An Urban Center Rebuilding Its Foundations Amidst the Onslaught of War.

Lesia Danylenko beamed with pride as she displayed her freshly fitted front door. Volunteers had playfully nicknamed its graceful transom window the “pastry”, a whimsical nod to its curved shape. “Personally, I believe it’s more of a peafowl,” she commented, admiring its twig-detailed ornamentation. The restoration project at one of Kyiv’s pre-World War I art nouveau houses was funded through residents, who commemorated the work with two lively pavement parties.

It was also an act of resistance against a neighboring state, she elaborated: “Our aim is to live like ordinary people regardless of the war. It’s about shaping our life in the most positive way. We’re not afraid of staying in our country. I had the option to depart, starting anew to a foreign land. On the contrary, I’m here. The new entrance symbolizes our allegiance to our homeland.”

“Our aim is to live like everyday people regardless of the war. It’s about organizing our life in the best possible way.”

Protecting Kyiv’s architectural heritage seems strange at a moment when aerial assaults frequently hit the capital, causing death and destruction. Since the onset of the current year, bombing campaigns have been significantly intensified. After each attack, workers seal shattered windows with plywood and attempt, where possible, to save residential buildings.

Amid the Bombs, a Battle for History

Amid the bombs, a group of activists has been attempting to preserve the city’s deteriorating mansions, built in a whimsical style known as Ukrainian modernism. Danylenko’s house is in the downtown Shevchenkivskyi district. It was constructed in 1906 and was first the home of a wealthy fur dealer. Its facade is adorned with horse chestnut leaves and delicate camomile flowers.

“These structures stand as symbols of Kyiv. These properties are quite rare today,” Danylenko stated. The building was designed by a designer of Austrian-German origin. Several other buildings close by display similar art nouveau features, including a lack of symmetry – with a pointed turret on one side and a turret on the other. One popular house in the area displays two unhappy white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a imp.

Dual Dangers to Legacy

But external attacks is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face unscrupulous developers who demolish historically significant buildings, corrupt officials and a administrative body unconcerned or opposed to the city’s vast architectural history. The harsh winter climate imposes another difficulty.

“Kyiv is a city where money wins. We are missing genuine political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He claimed the city’s mayor was friends with many of the developers who destroy important houses. Perov further alleged that the vision for the capital comes straight out of a different time. The mayor denies these claims, attributing them from political rivals.

Perov said many of the public-spirited activists who once championed older properties were now fighting on the frontline or had been lost. The protracted conflict meant that all citizens was facing monetary strain, he added, including those in the legal system who inexplicably ruled in favour of questionable new-build schemes. “The longer this persists the more we see decline of our society and governing institutions,” he remarked.

Demolition and Abandonment

One glaring demolition site is in the historic Podil neighbourhood. The street was the site of classical 19th-century houses. A developer who purchased the plot had pledged to preserve its picturesque brick facade. A day after the 2022 invasion, excavators razed it to the ground. Recently, a crane excavated foundations for a new retail and office development, 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 demolished old properties while asserting they were doing “historical excavation”, he said. A previous regime also wrought immense damage on the capital, rebuilding its main thoroughfare after the second world war so it could facilitate military vehicles.

Upholding the Legacy

One of Kyiv’s most notable advocates 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 persevering in his vital preservation work. There were initially 3,500 brick-built mansions in Kyiv, many erected for the city’s prosperous industrialists. Only 80 of their period doors survived, she said.

“It wasn’t aerial bombardments that got rid of them. It was us,” she admitted sadly. “The war could go on for another 20 years. If we fail to protect architecture now nothing will be left,” she added. Chudna recently helped to restore a characterful vine-clad 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 vermilion portal and original-style railings; inside is a period bathroom and antique mirrors.

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

The building’s resident, artist Yurii Pikul, described his home as “very cool and a little bit cold”. Why do many residents not value the past? “Unfortunately they lack education and taste. It’s all about business. We are attempting as a country to move towards the west. But we are still some distance away from civilization,” he said. Previous ways of thinking remained, with people reluctant to take personal responsibility for their architectural setting, he added.

Hope in Restoration

Some buildings are collapsing because of official neglect. Chudna showed a once-magical villa hidden behind a modern hospital. Its roof had collapsed; pigeons roosted among its shattered windows; debris lay under a storybook tower. “Many times we are unsuccessful,” she admitted. “This activity is a form of healing for us. We are attempting to save all this heritage and beauty.”

In the face of destruction and neglect, these volunteers continue their work, one facade at a time, stating that to rebuild a city’s soul, you must first save its walls.