Safeguarding the Capital's Heritage: A City Reconstructing Itself Amidst the Onslaught of Conflict.

Lesia Danylenko showed off with satisfaction her newly installed front door. Volunteers had affectionately dubbed its ornate transom window the “crescent roll”, a playful reference to its arched shape. “I think it’s more of a showy bird,” she commented, gazing at its tree limb-inspired ornamentation. The renovation effort at one of Kyiv’s turn-of-the-century art nouveau houses was made possible by residents, who commemorated the work with two neighbourhood pavement parties.

It was also an act of defiance towards an invading force, she explained: “Our aim is to live like normal people regardless of the war. It’s about organizing our life in the optimal way. We’re not afraid of staying in Ukraine. I could have left, moving away to another European nation. On the contrary, I’m here. The new entrance shows our commitment to our homeland.”

“We strive to live like ordinary people in spite of the war. It’s about shaping our life in the most positive way.”

Preserving Kyiv’s architectural heritage may appear strange at a time when missile strikes routinely fall the capital, resulting in death and destruction. Since the start of the current year, bombing campaigns have been dramatically stepped up. After each assault, workers cover blown-out windows with plywood and endeavor, where possible, to salvage residential buildings.

Amid the Bombs, a Campaign for Beauty

Despite the violence, a collective of activists has been striving to conserve the city’s deteriorating mansions, built in a distinctive style known as Ukrainian modernism. Danylenko’s house is in the downtown Shevchenkivskyi district. It was built in 1906 and was first the home of a prosperous fur dealer. Its outer walls is decorated with horse chestnut leaves and fine camomile flowers.

“These buildings represent symbols of Kyiv. These properties are uncommon in the present day,” Danylenko stated. The mansion was designed by an architect of Austrian-German origin. Several other buildings close by exhibit comparable art nouveau characteristics, including an irregular shape – with a pointed turret on one side and a projection on the other. One popular house in the area boasts two sullen white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a imp.

Multiple Threats to Legacy

But military aggression is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face unprincipled developers who raze historically significant buildings, unethical officials and a political leadership indifferent or opposed to the city’s profound architectural history. The bitter winter climate imposes another difficulty.

“Kyiv is a city where capital prevails. We don’t have 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 flatten important houses. Perov stated that the concept for the capital comes straight out of a bygone era. 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 serving in the military or had been fallen. The lengthy conflict meant that the entire society was facing financial problems, he added, including those in the legal system who mysteriously ruled in favour of questionable new-build schemes. “The longer this goes on the more we see decline of our society and governing institutions,” he remarked.

Destruction and Abandonment

One notorious demolition site is in the waterside Podil neighbourhood. The street was lined with classical 19th-century houses. A developer who purchased the plot had pledged to preserve its charming brick facade. Shortly following the full-scale invasion, diggers razed it to the ground. Recently, a crane dug foundations for a new retail and office development, monitored by a stern security guard.

Anatolii Pohorily, a heritage supporter, said there was not much hope for the remaining blue-green houses on the site. Sometimes developers levelled old properties while asserting they were doing “scientific study”, he said. A previous regime also caused immense damage on the capital, redesigning its main thoroughfare after the second world war so it could allow for military vehicles.

Continuing the Work

One of Kyiv’s most renowned advocates of historic buildings, a heritage expert, was killed in 2022 while serving in a contested area. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were persevering in his important preservation work. There were at one time 3,500 stone mansions in Kyiv, many constructed for the city’s prosperous business magnates. Only 80 of their original doors survived, she said.

“It wasn’t aerial bombardments that eliminated them. It was us,” she admitted sadly. “The war could go on for another 20 years. If we neglect architecture now not a thing will be left,” she added. Chudna recently helped to restore a characterful creeper-covered 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 red door and period-correct railings; inside is a period bathroom and antique mirrors.

“The war could go on for another 20 years. If we fail to protect architecture now nothing will be left.”

The building’s occupant, artist Yurii Pikul, described his home as “incredibly atmospheric and a little bit cold”. Why do many citizens not value the past? “Regrettably they do not have education and taste. It’s all about business. We are striving as a country to go to the west. But we are still not yet close from such cultural awareness,” he said. Outdated ways of thinking remained, with people reluctant to take personal responsibility for their built surroundings, he added.

Resilience in Preservation

Some buildings are crumbling because of institutional abandonment. Chudna pointed to a once-magical villa tucked away behind a modern hospital. Its roof had fallen; pigeons nested among its broken windows; refuse lay under a storybook tower. “Many times we lose the battle,” she acknowledged. “Restoration is therapy for us. We are trying to save all this history and aesthetic value.”

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