Protecting the Capital's Architectural Legacy: A City Reconstructing Its Foundations in the Shadow of Conflict.

Lesia Danylenko proudly presented her freshly fitted front door. Volunteers had affectionately dubbed its ornate transom window the “pastry”, a whimsical nod to its arched shape. “Personally, I believe it’s more of a showy bird,” she stated, appreciating its twig-detailed details. The restoration project at one of Kyiv’s early 20th-century art nouveau houses was made possible by residents, who celebrated with several neighbourhood pavement parties.

It was also an demonstration of resistance against a neighboring state, she explained: “Our aim is to live like ordinary people regardless of the war. It’s about organizing our life in the best possible way. We’re not afraid of staying in our country. I had the option to depart, moving away to Italy. Conversely, I’m here. The new entrance represents our allegiance to our homeland.”

“We are trying 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 drone attacks frequently hit the capital, causing death and destruction. Since the start of the current year, aerial raids have been dramatically stepped up. After each assault, workers board up shattered windows with plywood and endeavor, where possible, to salvage residential buildings.

Among the Bombs, a Campaign for Identity

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 central Shevchenkivskyi district. It was built in 1906 and was first the home of a prosperous fur dealer. Its outer walls is adorned with horse chestnut leaves and intricate camomile flowers.

“They are symbols of Kyiv. These properties are uncommon today,” Danylenko noted. The mansion was designed by an architect of Central European origin. Several other buildings in the vicinity display analogous art nouveau features, including asymmetry – with a gothic tower on one side and a turret on the other. One popular house in the area boasts two sullen white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a imp.

Multiple Challenges to Legacy

But military aggression is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face unscrupulous developers who knock down listed buildings, corrupt officials and a political leadership apathetic or opposed to the city’s profound architectural history. The severe winter climate presents another burden.

“Kyiv is a city where capital prevails. We lack genuine political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He alleged the city’s leadership was friends with many of the developers who bulldoze important houses. Perov added that the vision for the capital is reminiscent of a bygone era. The mayor rejects these claims, stating they come from political rivals.

Perov said many of the community-oriented activists who once defended older properties were now engaged in combat or had been lost. The protracted conflict meant that the entire society was facing financial problems, he added, including those in the legal system who mysteriously ruled in favour of dubious new-build schemes. “The longer this persists the more we see degradation of our society and governing institutions,” he argued.

Loss and Abandonment

One egregious location of loss 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 charming brick facade. A day after the onset of major hostilities, diggers 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 faint chance for the remaining blue-green houses on the site. Sometimes developers levelled old properties while asserting they were doing “scientific study”, he said. A 20th-century empire also inflicted immense damage on the capital, rebuilding its main thoroughfare after the second world war so it could facilitate official processions.

Continuing the Work

One of Kyiv’s most renowned advocates of historic buildings, a heritage expert, was fell in 2022 while fighting in a contested area. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were continuing his vital preservation work. There were originally 3,500 stone mansions in Kyiv, many built for the city’s successful entrepreneurs. Only 80 of their authentic doors remain, she said.

“It wasn’t aerial bombardments that eliminated them. It was us,” she lamented. “The war could last another 20 years. If we fail to protect architecture now little will be left,” she added. 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 doubles as a film set and museum. The property has a new red door and authentic railings; inside is a period bathroom and antique mirrors.

“The war could continue for another 20 years. If we don’t defend architecture now nothing will be left.”

The building’s resident, artist Yurii Pikul, described his home as “incredibly atmospheric and a little bit cold”. Why do many locals not cherish the past? “Unfortunately they are without education and taste. It’s all about business. We are attempting as a country to go to the west. But we are still not yet close from that standard,” he said. Previous ways of thinking lingered, with people unwilling to take personal responsibility for their built surroundings, he added.

Hope in Restoration

Some buildings are falling apart 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; debris lay under a fairytale tower. “Often we don’t win,” she acknowledged. “Restoration is a coping mechanism for us. We are striving to save all this heritage and aesthetic value.”

In the face of conflict and commercial interests, these volunteers continue their work, one door at a time, stating that to preserve a city’s heart, you must first protect its history.