Safeguarding Kyiv's Heritage: A City Reconstructing Its Foundations Under the Threat of War.

Lesia Danylenko proudly presented her freshly fitted front door. The restoration team had affectionately dubbed its elegant transom window the “croissant”, a playful reference to its bowed shape. “I think it’s more of a peacock,” she remarked, admiring its twig-detailed ornamentation. The renovation effort at one of Kyiv’s pre-World War I art nouveau houses was funded through residents, who celebrated with several lively pavement parties.

It was also an demonstration of resistance against a neighboring state, she explained: “We are trying to live like normal people regardless of the war. It’s about shaping our life in the most positive way. We’re not afraid of remaining in our country. The possibility to emigrate existed, relocating to Italy. Conversely, I’m here. The new entrance represents our dedication to our homeland.”

“We are trying to live like normal people in spite of the war. It’s about arranging our life in the best possible way.”

Protecting Kyiv’s historic buildings may appear strange at a time when drone attacks routinely fall the capital, resulting in death and destruction. Since the onset of the current year, bombing campaigns have been dramatically stepped up. After each assault, workers board up broken windows with plywood and endeavor, where possible, to secure residential buildings.

Amid the Bombs, a Fight for Beauty

Despite the violence, a group of activists has been striving to conserve the city’s crumbling mansions, built in a playful style known as Ukrainian modernism. Danylenko’s house is in the downtown Shevchenkivskyi district. It was constructed in 1906 and was initially the home of a prosperous fur dealer. Its facade is decorated with horse chestnut leaves and delicate camomile flowers.

“They are symbols of Kyiv. These properties are uncommon today,” Danylenko noted. The building was designed by a designer of Central European origin. Several other buildings close by display comparable art nouveau features, including asymmetry – with a pointed turret on one side and a turret on the other. One much-loved house in the area displays two forlorn white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a demonic figure.

Dual Threats to History

But military aggression is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face profit-driven developers who demolish protected buildings, dishonest officials and a administrative body indifferent or hostile to the city’s rich architectural history. The bitter winter climate adds another challenge.

“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 mayor was closely associated with many of the developers who bulldoze important houses. Perov stated that the vision for the capital is reminiscent of a different time. The mayor has refuted these claims, saying they originate from political rivals.

Perov said many of the civically minded activists who once championed older properties were now serving in the military or had been fallen. The lengthy conflict meant that the entire society was facing monetary strain, he added, including judicial figures who inexplicably ruled in favour of suspect new-build schemes. “The longer this persists the more we see decline of our society and governing institutions,” he argued.

Destruction and Disregard

One egregious demolition site is in the waterside Podil neighbourhood. The street was lined with classical 19th-century houses. A developer who obtained the plot had committed to preserve its charming brick facade. A day after the full-scale invasion, heavy machinery tore it down. Recently, a crane prepared foundations for a new commercial complex, monitored by a stern security guard.

Anatolii Pohorily, a heritage supporter, said there was little optimism for the remaining turquoise-painted houses on the site. Sometimes developers destroyed old properties while claiming they were doing “archaeological research”, he said. A previous regime also inflicted immense damage on the capital, reconstructing its main thoroughfare after the second world war so it could accommodate military vehicles.

Continuing the Work

One of Kyiv’s most prominent champions of historic buildings, a cultural activist, was killed in 2022 while fighting in the frontline. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were continuing his crucial preservation work. There were at one time 3,500 stone mansions in Kyiv, many constructed for the city’s prosperous industrialists. Only 80 of their original doors remain, she said.

“It wasn’t external attacks that destroyed them. It was us,” she said with regret. “The war could last another 20 years. If we neglect architecture now nothing will be left,” she emphasized. 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 operates as a film set and museum. The property has a new red door and original-style railings; inside is a historic washroom and antique mirrors.

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

The building’s tenant, artist Yurii Pikul, described his home as “quite special and a little bit cold”. Why do many locals not value the past? “Sadly 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 a way off from such cultural awareness,” he said. Soviet-era ways of thinking lingered, with people reluctant to take personal responsibility for their built surroundings, he added.

Resilience in Preservation

Some buildings are crumbling because of official neglect. Chudna showed a once-magical villa tucked away behind a modern hospital. Its roof had collapsed; pigeons roosted among its shattered windows; refuse lay under a whimsical tower. “Often we are unsuccessful,” she conceded. “This activity is a coping mechanism for us. We are trying to save all this past and aesthetic value.”

In the face of war and commercial interests, these volunteers continue their work, one facade at a time, believing that to rebuild a city’s heart, you must first protect its history.