Safeguarding the Capital's Heritage: An Urban Center Reconstructing Itself Amidst the Onslaught of Conflict.

Lesia Danylenko showed off with satisfaction her recently completed front door. Local helpers had given the moniker its elegant transom window the “crescent roll”, a playful reference to its curved shape. “Personally, I believe it’s more of a peafowl,” she commented, appreciating its branch-like ornamentation. The restoration project at one of Kyiv’s early 20th-century art nouveau houses was funded through residents, who celebrated with several impromptu pavement parties.

It was also an act of opposition towards a foreign power, she elaborated: “We are trying to live like normal people despite the war. It’s about organizing our life in the most positive way. Fear does not drive us of staying in Ukraine. I had the option to depart, moving away to a foreign land. Instead, I’m here. The new entrance represents our allegiance to our homeland.”

“Our aim is to live like ordinary people in spite of the war. It’s about shaping our life in the best possible way.”

Safeguarding Kyiv’s historic buildings could be considered unusual at a period when missile strikes frequently hit the capital, bringing death and destruction. Since the start of the current year, aerial raids have been notably increased. After each assault, workers cover blown-out windows with plywood and endeavor, where possible, to secure residential buildings.

Among the Bombs, a Fight for Identity

Amid the bombs, a group 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 prosperous fur dealer. Its outer walls is adorned with horse chestnut leaves and fine camomile flowers.

“They are symbols of Kyiv. These properties are increasingly scarce in the present day,” Danylenko said. The residence was designed by an architect of Austrian-German origin. Several other buildings nearby exhibit analogous art nouveau features, including asymmetry – with a medieval spire on one side and a projection on the other. One beloved house in the area features two sullen white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a imp.

Several Dangers to Heritage

But armed conflict is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face unprincipled developers who raze listed buildings, dishonest officials and a political leadership unconcerned or resistant to the city’s rich architectural history. The bitter winter climate presents another challenge.

“Kyiv is a city where capital prevails. We don’t have real political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He claimed the city’s mayor was allied with many of the developers who bulldoze important houses. Perov stated that the vision for the capital harks back to 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 fighting on the frontline or had been fallen. The protracted conflict meant that everyone was facing economic hardship, he added, including those in the legal system who curiously ruled in favour of suspect new-build schemes. “The longer this continues the more we see deterioration of our society and governing institutions,” he remarked.

Demolition and Neglect

One glaring location of loss is in the waterside Podil neighbourhood. The street was the site of classical 19th-century houses. A developer who obtained the plot had agreed to preserve its picturesque brick facade. A day after the full-scale invasion, excavators demolished it. Recently, a crane excavated foundations for a new retail and office development, observed by a stern security guard.

Anatolii Pohorily, a heritage supporter, said there was faint chance for the remaining coloured houses on the site. Sometimes developers levelled old properties while claiming they were doing “historical excavation”, he said. A previous regime also wrought immense damage on the capital, reconstructing its central boulevard after the second world war so it could accommodate official processions.

Carrying the Torch

One of Kyiv’s most prominent champions of historic buildings, a cultural activist, was killed in 2022 while serving in a contested area. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were continuing his important preservation work. There were originally 3,500 masonry mansions in Kyiv, many constructed for the city’s successful business magnates. Only 80 of their original doors survived, she said.

“It was not external attacks that eliminated them. It was us,” she admitted sadly. “The war could go on for another 20 years. If we fail to protect architecture now not a thing will be left,” she added. Chudna recently helped to restore a full of character vine-clad house built in 1910, which serves 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 go on for another 20 years. If we don’t defend architecture now nothing 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 cherish the past? “Regrettably they do not have education and taste. It’s all about business. We are trying as a country to integrate with the west. But we are still a way off from such cultural awareness,” he said. Previous ways of thinking remained, with people reluctant to take personal responsibility for their built surroundings, he added.

Hope in Preservation

Some buildings are falling apart because of official neglect. Chudna showed a once-magical villa concealed behind a modern hospital. Its roof had caved in; pigeons roosted among its shattered windows; debris lay under a fairytale tower. “Often we are unsuccessful,” she admitted. “This activity is a coping mechanism for us. We are trying to save all this past and beauty.”

In the face of conflict and commercial interests, these citizens continue their work, one door at a time, arguing that to rebuild a city’s identity, you must first save its stones.