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

Lesia Danylenko showed off with satisfaction her recently completed front door. The restoration team had playfully nicknamed its graceful transom window the “croissant”, a playful reference to its bowed shape. “Personally, I believe it’s more of a peafowl,” she commented, gazing at its tree limb-inspired ornamentation. The refurbishment initiative at one of Kyiv’s pre-World War I art nouveau houses was made possible by residents, who celebrated with two lively pavement parties.

It was also an act of opposition towards a neighboring state, she clarified: “Our aim is to live like ordinary people regardless of the war. It’s about organizing our life in the optimal way. We have no fear of staying in our country. I could have left, moving away to another European nation. 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 shaping our life in the optimal way.”

Protecting Kyiv’s historic buildings seems strange at a moment when missile strikes routinely fall the capital, bringing death and destruction. Since the beginning of the current year, offensive operations have been notably increased. After each attack, workers seal broken windows with plywood and attempt, where possible, to salvage residential buildings.

Among the Conflict, a Campaign for Beauty

Amid the bombs, a collective of activists has been attempting to preserve the city’s crumbling mansions, built in a playful style known as Ukrainian modernism. Danylenko’s house is in the historic Shevchenkivskyi district. It was constructed in 1906 and was first the home of a wealthy 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 building was designed by an architect of Central European origin. Several other buildings in the vicinity display comparable art nouveau elements, including asymmetry – with a gothic tower on one side and a projection on the other. One beloved house in the area boasts two forlorn white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a demonic figure.

Dual Challenges to History

But armed conflict is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face unprincipled developers who knock down listed buildings, dishonest officials and a administrative body apathetic or opposed to the city’s rich architectural history. The bitter winter climate adds another difficulty.

“Kyiv is a city where money wins. We are missing real 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 destroy important houses. Perov further alleged that the concept for the capital harks back to a previous decade. The mayor rejects these claims, saying they originate from political rivals.

Perov said many of the public-spirited activists who once championed older properties were now serving in the military or had been fallen. The lengthy conflict meant that all citizens was facing monetary strain, he added, including those in the legal system who mysteriously ruled in favour of dubious new-build schemes. “The longer this continues the more we see deterioration of our society and state bodies,” he argued.

Loss and Abandonment

One notorious example of destruction is in the riverside 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 onset of major hostilities, diggers tore it down. Recently, a crane prepared foundations for a new retail and office development, watched by a stern security guard.

Anatolii Pohorily, a heritage supporter, said there was little optimism for the remaining coloured houses on the site. Sometimes developers levelled old properties while claiming they were doing “scientific study”, he said. A 20th-century empire also caused immense damage on the capital, reconstructing its primary street after the second world war so it could facilitate large-scale parades.

Upholding the Legacy

One of Kyiv’s most renowned advocates of historic buildings, a heritage expert, was fell in 2022 while serving in the frontline. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were persevering in his vital preservation work. There were initially 3,500 brick-built mansions in Kyiv, many built for the city’s prosperous business magnates. Only 80 of their original doors survived, she said.

“It was not foreign rockets that got rid of them. It was us,” she lamented. “The war could continue for another 20 years. If we neglect architecture now not a thing will be left,” she continued. 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 crimson entrance and period-correct railings; inside is a historic washroom and antique mirrors.

“The war could last another 20 years. If we neglect architecture now not a thing will be left.”

The building’s tenant, artist Yurii Pikul, described his home as “incredibly atmospheric and a little bit cold”. Why do many residents not cherish the past? “Regrettably they are without 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 civilization,” he said. Outdated ways of thinking persisted, with people hesitant to take personal responsibility for their architectural setting, he added.

Therapy in Preservation

Some buildings are collapsing because of bureaucratic indifference. Chudna indicated a once-magical villa tucked away behind a modern hospital. Its roof had collapsed; pigeons roosted among its shattered windows; refuse lay under a storybook tower. “Many times we are unsuccessful,” she conceded. “This activity is a form of healing for us. We are attempting to save all this history and beauty.”

In the face of conflict and commercial interests, these citizens continue their work, one building at a time, arguing that to save a city’s heart, you must first protect its walls.