Safeguarding Kyiv's Heritage: A City Rebuilding Its Foundations in the Shadow of Conflict.

Lesia Danylenko proudly presented her newly installed front door. The restoration team had given the moniker its elegant transom window the “pastry”, a lighthearted tribute to its bowed shape. “Personally, I believe it’s more of a showy bird,” she stated, admiring its branch-like details. The refurbishment initiative at one of Kyiv’s pre-World War I art nouveau houses was supported by residents, who commemorated the work with several lively pavement parties.

It was also an act of defiance in the face of an invading force, she explained: “Our aim is to live like normal people in spite of the war. It’s about arranging our life in the best possible way. We’re not afraid of living in our country. I had the option to depart, moving away to another European nation. On the contrary, I’m here. The new entrance represents our commitment to our homeland.”

“Our aim is to live like everyday people despite the war. It’s about organizing our life in the optimal way.”

Safeguarding Kyiv’s built legacy may appear paradoxical at a moment when aerial assaults routinely fall the capital, resulting in death and destruction. Since the onset of the current year, offensive operations have been dramatically stepped up. After each attack, workers board up broken windows with plywood and endeavor, where possible, to save residential buildings.

Within the Conflict, a Campaign for Identity

In the midst of war, a band of activists has been striving to preserve the city’s deteriorating mansions, built in a playful style known as Ukrainian modernism. Danylenko’s house is in the historic Shevchenkivskyi district. It was built in 1906 and was first the home of a wealthy fur dealer. Its exterior is adorned with horse chestnut leaves and delicate camomile flowers.

“They are symbols of Kyiv. These properties are quite rare today,” Danylenko said. The building was designed by an architect of Central European origin. Several other buildings nearby showcase similar art nouveau elements, including an irregular shape – with a pointed turret on one side and a projection on the other. One beloved house in the area features two sullen white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a imp.

Dual Threats to Heritage

But armed conflict is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face profit-driven developers who demolish protected buildings, dishonest officials and a governing class apathetic or hostile to the city’s profound architectural history. The severe winter climate imposes another burden.

“Kyiv is a city where capital prevails. We lack genuine political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He asserted the city’s leadership was friends with many of the developers who bulldoze important houses. Perov added that the concept 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 protected older properties were now engaged in combat or had been fallen. The protracted conflict meant that the entire society was facing economic hardship, he added, including judicial figures who mysteriously ruled in favour of dubious new-build schemes. “The longer this goes on the more we see decline of our society and state bodies,” he contended.

Loss and Abandonment

One glaring demolition site is in the waterside Podil neighbourhood. The street was home to classical 19th-century houses. A developer who purchased the plot had pledged to preserve its attractive brick facade. Shortly following the 2022 invasion, diggers tore it down. Recently, a crane prepared foundations for a new shopping and business centre, watched by a surly 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 claiming they were doing “historical excavation”, he said. A previous regime also caused immense damage on the capital, rebuilding its main thoroughfare after the second world war so it could accommodate official processions.

Upholding the Legacy

One of Kyiv’s most renowned champions of historic buildings, a cultural activist, was killed in 2022 while serving in the frontline. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were persevering in his vital preservation work. There were initially 3,500 stone mansions in Kyiv, many built for the city’s wealthy entrepreneurs. 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 neglect architecture now nothing will be left,” she continued. Chudna recently helped to restore a full of character vine-clad 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 vermilion portal and original-style railings; inside is a historic washroom 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 “incredibly atmospheric and a little bit cold”. Why do many residents not cherish the past? “Sadly they are without education and taste. It’s all about business. We are attempting as a country to integrate with the west. But we are still not yet close from such cultural awareness,” he said. Soviet-era ways of thinking persisted, with people hesitant to take personal responsibility for their urban environment, he added.

Resilience in Action

Some buildings are collapsing because of bureaucratic indifference. Chudna showed a once-magical villa concealed behind a modern hospital. Its roof had collapsed; pigeons made their home among its smashed windows; debris lay under a storybook tower. “Often we lose the battle,” she conceded. “This activity is therapy for us. We are striving to save all this past and beauty.”

In the face of war and commercial interests, these activists continue their work, one facade at a time, stating that to save a city’s heart, you must first cherish its history.