Preserving the Capital's Heritage: A City Rebuilding Itself Amidst the Onslaught of War.

Lesia Danylenko proudly presented her newly installed front door. The restoration team had given the moniker its elegant transom window the “croissant”, a whimsical nod to its arched shape. “I think it’s more of a peafowl,” she stated, admiring its twig-detailed ornamentation. The restoration project at one of Kyiv’s pre-World War I art nouveau houses was funded through residents, who commemorated the work with two neighbourhood pavement parties.

It was also an expression of resistance in the face of a neighboring state, she explained: “We strive to live like ordinary people despite the war. It’s about organizing our life in the optimal way. Fear does not drive us of remaining in our country. The possibility to emigrate existed, moving away to Italy. On the contrary, I’m here. The new entrance represents our commitment to our homeland.”

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

Preserving Kyiv’s historic buildings could be considered strange at a moment when missile strikes routinely fall the capital, causing death and destruction. Since the onset of the current year, aerial raids have been significantly intensified. After each assault, workers board up broken windows with plywood and endeavor, where possible, to secure residential buildings.

Within the Explosions, a Campaign for Beauty

In the midst of war, 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 historic 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 fine camomile flowers.

“These structures stand as symbols of Kyiv. These properties are increasingly scarce nowadays,” Danylenko noted. The building was designed by a designer of Central European origin. Several other buildings nearby display analogous art nouveau characteristics, including a lack of symmetry – with a pointed turret on one side and a turret on the other. One beloved house in the area boasts two sullen white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a devil.

Multiple Challenges to History

But external attacks is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face unprincipled developers who raze historically significant buildings, dishonest officials and a governing class indifferent or resistant to the city’s vast architectural history. The harsh winter climate presents another difficulty.

“Kyiv is a city where capital prevails. We lack real political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He alleged the city’s mayor was friends with many of the developers who destroy important houses. Perov further alleged that the plan for the capital harks back to a different time. The mayor denies these claims, saying they originate from political rivals.

Perov said many of the civically minded activists who once championed older properties were now fighting on the frontline or had been lost. The protracted conflict meant that all citizens was facing economic hardship, he added, including judicial figures who inexplicably ruled in favour of suspect new-build schemes. “The longer this goes on the more we see deterioration of our society and governing institutions,” he contended.

Demolition and Abandonment

One glaring demolition site is in the riverside Podil neighbourhood. The street was lined with classical 19th-century houses. A developer who acquired the plot had committed to preserve its charming brick facade. In the immediate aftermath of the 2022 invasion, excavators demolished it. Recently, a crane prepared foundations for a new shopping and business centre, watched 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 “historical excavation”, he said. A former political system also caused immense damage on the capital, rebuilding its main thoroughfare after the second world war so it could accommodate military vehicles.

Carrying the Torch

One of Kyiv’s most renowned champions of historic buildings, a tour guide and blogger, was fell in 2022 while fighting in a contested area. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were carrying on his crucial preservation work. There were initially 3,500 brick-built mansions in Kyiv, many erected for the city’s successful business magnates. Only 80 of their authentic doors are still in existence, she said.

“It was not foreign rockets that got rid of them. It was us,” she said with regret. “The war could go on for another 20 years. If we neglect architecture now nothing will be left,” she emphasized. Chudna recently helped to restore a unique ivy-draped 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 original-style railings; inside is a period bathroom and antique mirrors.

“The war could go on for another 20 years. If we don’t defend architecture now not a thing will be left.”

The building’s resident, artist Yurii Pikul, described his home as “quite special and a little bit cold”. Why do many citizens not value the past? “Regrettably they lack education and taste. It’s all about business. We are trying as a country to go to the west. But we are still some distance away from that standard,” he said. Soviet-era ways of thinking remained, with people reluctant to take personal responsibility for their built surroundings, he added.

Therapy in Restoration

Some buildings are crumbling 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 smashed windows; rubbish lay under a storybook tower. “Frequently we don’t win,” she admitted. “This activity is a form of healing for us. We are attempting to save all this past and splendour.”

In the face of conflict and commercial interests, these activists continue their work, one building at a time, believing that to rebuild a city’s soul, you must first cherish its stones.