Protecting the Capital's Heritage: A City Rebuilding Its Foundations Amidst the Onslaught of Conflict.

Lesia Danylenko proudly presented her freshly fitted front door. Volunteers had playfully nicknamed its elegant transom window the “crescent roll”, a whimsical nod to its bowed shape. “Personally, I believe it’s more of a peacock,” she commented, admiring its branch-like details. The restoration project at one of Kyiv’s early 20th-century art nouveau houses was made possible by residents, who marked the occasion with two neighbourhood pavement parties.

It was also an act of opposition towards a foreign power, she explained: “We strive to live like normal people regardless of the war. It’s about arranging our life in the optimal way. We’re not afraid of remaining in our homeland. I had the option to depart, moving away to another European nation. Conversely, I’m here. The new entrance shows our commitment to our homeland.”

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

Safeguarding Kyiv’s historic buildings could be considered paradoxical at a period when missile strikes regularly target 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 seal shattered windows with plywood and endeavor, where possible, to save residential buildings.

Amid the Explosions, a Fight for Identity

Amid the bombs, a group of activists has been striving to conserve 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 constructed in 1906 and was first the home of a wealthy fur dealer. Its outer walls is embellished with horse chestnut leaves and delicate camomile flowers.

“These structures stand as symbols of Kyiv. These properties are quite rare in the present day,” Danylenko stated. The mansion was designed by a designer of Central European origin. Several other buildings close by display analogous art nouveau features, including a lack of symmetry – with a medieval spire on one side and a projection on the other. One much-loved house in the area boasts two forlorn white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a demonic figure.

Multiple Threats to History

But military aggression is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face unprincipled developers who demolish listed buildings, corrupt officials and a political leadership unconcerned or hostile to the city’s vast architectural history. The harsh winter climate presents another burden.

“Kyiv is a city where money wins. We lack genuine political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He claimed the city’s mayor was closely associated with many of the developers who flatten important houses. Perov further alleged that the concept for the capital harks back to a different time. The mayor has refuted these claims, saying they originate from political rivals.

Perov said many of the public-spirited activists who once championed older properties were now engaged in combat or had been fallen. The lengthy conflict meant that everyone was facing financial problems, he added, including those in the legal system who inexplicably ruled in favour of suspect new-build schemes. “The longer this continues the more we see deterioration of our society and governing institutions,” he contended.

Loss and Abandonment

One glaring demolition site is in the historic Podil neighbourhood. The street was lined with classical 19th-century houses. A developer who obtained the plot had pledged to preserve its charming brick facade. In the immediate aftermath of the onset of major hostilities, diggers razed it to the ground. 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 asserting they were doing “scientific study”, he said. A 20th-century empire also caused immense damage on the capital, rebuilding its primary street after the second world war so it could facilitate military vehicles.

Upholding the Legacy

One of Kyiv’s most renowned defenders of historic buildings, a cultural activist, was lost his life in 2022 while fighting in a eastern city. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were persevering in his vital preservation work. There were originally 3,500 brick-built mansions in Kyiv, many erected for the city’s wealthy industrialists. Only 80 of their original doors remain, 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 neglect architecture now little will be left,” she added. Chudna recently helped to restore a unique vine-clad house built in 1910, which serves 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 historic washroom and antique mirrors.

“The war could go on for another 20 years. If we fail to protect architecture now not a thing will be left.”

The building’s occupant, artist Yurii Pikul, described his home as “quite special and a little bit cold”. Why do many residents not cherish the past? “Sadly they lack education and taste. It’s all about business. We are striving as a country to move towards the west. But we are still some distance away from civilization,” he said. Outdated ways of thinking remained, with people reluctant to take personal responsibility for their urban environment, he added.

Therapy in Preservation

Some buildings are collapsing because of official neglect. Chudna pointed to a once-magical villa tucked away behind a modern hospital. Its roof had collapsed; pigeons roosted among its broken windows; refuse lay under a storybook tower. “Often we are unsuccessful,” she admitted. “Preservation work is therapy for us. We are attempting to save all this past and beauty.”

In the face of destruction and neglect, these volunteers continue their work, one building at a time, arguing that to rebuild a city’s heart, you must first cherish its stones.