🔗 Share this article Protecting Kyiv's Heritage: A City Rebuilding Its Foundations in the Shadow of Conflict. Lesia Danylenko showed off with satisfaction her newly installed front door. Local helpers had given the moniker its ornate transom window the “croissant”, a lighthearted tribute to its curved shape. “Personally, I believe it’s more of a showy bird,” she stated, appreciating its branch-like ornamentation. The renovation effort at one of Kyiv’s early 20th-century art nouveau houses was supported by residents, who commemorated the work with a couple of impromptu pavement parties. It was also an demonstration of opposition against a neighboring state, she clarified: “We are trying to live like normal people despite the war. It’s about organizing our life in the best possible way. Fear does not drive us of staying in Ukraine. I had the option to depart, relocating to Italy. Conversely, I’m here. The new entrance shows our dedication to our homeland.” “We are trying to live like normal people in spite of the war. It’s about organizing our life in the most positive way.” Safeguarding Kyiv’s architectural heritage could be considered strange at a period when aerial assaults routinely fall the capital, bringing death and destruction. Since the onset of the current year, offensive operations have been dramatically stepped up. After each strike, workers board up shattered windows with plywood and try, where possible, to save residential buildings. Among the Explosions, a Battle for History Amid the bombs, a group of activists has been working to save the city’s crumbling mansions, built in a distinctive 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 affluent fur dealer. Its exterior is adorned with horse chestnut leaves and fine camomile flowers. “These buildings represent symbols of Kyiv. These properties are quite rare in the present day,” Danylenko stated. The residence was designed by a designer of Austrian-German origin. Several other buildings nearby display comparable art nouveau characteristics, including asymmetry – with a gothic tower on one side and a turret on the other. One popular house in the area features two forlorn white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a devil. Several Threats to Legacy But external attacks is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face unprincipled developers who knock down protected buildings, corrupt officials and a political leadership apathetic or resistant to the city’s vast architectural history. The harsh winter climate adds another burden. “Kyiv is a city where wealth dictates. We lack real political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He alleged the city’s mayor was allied with many of the developers who bulldoze important houses. Perov added that the vision for the capital is reminiscent of a previous decade. The mayor rejects these claims, attributing them from political rivals. Perov said many of the civically minded activists who once defended older properties were now serving in the military or had been killed. The protracted conflict meant that all citizens was facing economic hardship, he added, including judicial figures who curiously ruled in favour of suspect new-build schemes. “The longer this goes on the more we see degradation of our society and state bodies,” he argued. Destruction and Disregard One notorious location of loss is in the historic Podil neighbourhood. The street was the site of classical 19th-century houses. A developer who acquired the plot had pledged to preserve its charming brick facade. Shortly following the 2022 invasion, excavators demolished it. Recently, a crane dug foundations for a new retail and office development, monitored by a unfriendly security guard. Anatolii Pohorily, a heritage supporter, said there was faint chance for the remaining coloured houses on the site. Sometimes developers destroyed old properties while stating they were doing “archaeological research”, he said. A 20th-century empire also inflicted immense damage on the capital, redesigning its central boulevard after the second world war so it could allow for official processions. Carrying the Torch One of Kyiv’s most renowned advocates of historic buildings, a cultural activist, was fell in 2022 while serving in the frontline. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were carrying on his crucial preservation work. There were at one time 3,500 masonry mansions in Kyiv, many built for the city’s wealthy business magnates. Only 80 of their original doors survived, she said. “It wasn’t aerial bombardments that got rid of them. It was us,” she admitted sadly. “The war could continue for another 20 years. If we don’t defend architecture now little will be left,” she continued. Chudna recently helped to restore a full of character ivy-draped house built in 1910, which acts as the headquarters of her cultural organization and also serves as a film set and museum. The property has a new red door and authentic railings; inside is a vintage sanitary facility and antique mirrors. “The war could last another 20 years. If we don’t defend architecture now little 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 value the past? “Sadly they lack education and taste. It’s all about business. We are trying as a country to move towards the west. But we are still a way off from that standard,” he said. Previous ways of thinking lingered, with people unwilling to take personal responsibility for their urban environment, he added. Resilience in Preservation Some buildings are crumbling because of institutional abandonment. Chudna indicated a once-magical villa hidden behind a modern hospital. Its roof had fallen; pigeons made their home among its smashed windows; rubbish lay under a fairytale tower. “Often we don’t win,” she conceded. “This activity is a form of healing for us. We are attempting to save all this heritage and aesthetic value.” In the face of war and development pressures, these volunteers continue their work, one door at a time, believing that to save a city’s heart, you must first cherish its history.
Lesia Danylenko showed off with satisfaction her newly installed front door. Local helpers had given the moniker its ornate transom window the “croissant”, a lighthearted tribute to its curved shape. “Personally, I believe it’s more of a showy bird,” she stated, appreciating its branch-like ornamentation. The renovation effort at one of Kyiv’s early 20th-century art nouveau houses was supported by residents, who commemorated the work with a couple of impromptu pavement parties. It was also an demonstration of opposition against a neighboring state, she clarified: “We are trying to live like normal people despite the war. It’s about organizing our life in the best possible way. Fear does not drive us of staying in Ukraine. I had the option to depart, relocating to Italy. Conversely, I’m here. The new entrance shows our dedication to our homeland.” “We are trying to live like normal people in spite of the war. It’s about organizing our life in the most positive way.” Safeguarding Kyiv’s architectural heritage could be considered strange at a period when aerial assaults routinely fall the capital, bringing death and destruction. Since the onset of the current year, offensive operations have been dramatically stepped up. After each strike, workers board up shattered windows with plywood and try, where possible, to save residential buildings. Among the Explosions, a Battle for History Amid the bombs, a group of activists has been working to save the city’s crumbling mansions, built in a distinctive 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 affluent fur dealer. Its exterior is adorned with horse chestnut leaves and fine camomile flowers. “These buildings represent symbols of Kyiv. These properties are quite rare in the present day,” Danylenko stated. The residence was designed by a designer of Austrian-German origin. Several other buildings nearby display comparable art nouveau characteristics, including asymmetry – with a gothic tower on one side and a turret on the other. One popular house in the area features two forlorn white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a devil. Several Threats to Legacy But external attacks is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face unprincipled developers who knock down protected buildings, corrupt officials and a political leadership apathetic or resistant to the city’s vast architectural history. The harsh winter climate adds another burden. “Kyiv is a city where wealth dictates. We lack real political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He alleged the city’s mayor was allied with many of the developers who bulldoze important houses. Perov added that the vision for the capital is reminiscent of a previous decade. The mayor rejects these claims, attributing them from political rivals. Perov said many of the civically minded activists who once defended older properties were now serving in the military or had been killed. The protracted conflict meant that all citizens was facing economic hardship, he added, including judicial figures who curiously ruled in favour of suspect new-build schemes. “The longer this goes on the more we see degradation of our society and state bodies,” he argued. Destruction and Disregard One notorious location of loss is in the historic Podil neighbourhood. The street was the site of classical 19th-century houses. A developer who acquired the plot had pledged to preserve its charming brick facade. Shortly following the 2022 invasion, excavators demolished it. Recently, a crane dug foundations for a new retail and office development, monitored by a unfriendly security guard. Anatolii Pohorily, a heritage supporter, said there was faint chance for the remaining coloured houses on the site. Sometimes developers destroyed old properties while stating they were doing “archaeological research”, he said. A 20th-century empire also inflicted immense damage on the capital, redesigning its central boulevard after the second world war so it could allow for official processions. Carrying the Torch One of Kyiv’s most renowned advocates of historic buildings, a cultural activist, was fell in 2022 while serving in the frontline. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were carrying on his crucial preservation work. There were at one time 3,500 masonry mansions in Kyiv, many built for the city’s wealthy business magnates. Only 80 of their original doors survived, she said. “It wasn’t aerial bombardments that got rid of them. It was us,” she admitted sadly. “The war could continue for another 20 years. If we don’t defend architecture now little will be left,” she continued. Chudna recently helped to restore a full of character ivy-draped house built in 1910, which acts as the headquarters of her cultural organization and also serves as a film set and museum. The property has a new red door and authentic railings; inside is a vintage sanitary facility and antique mirrors. “The war could last another 20 years. If we don’t defend architecture now little 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 value the past? “Sadly they lack education and taste. It’s all about business. We are trying as a country to move towards the west. But we are still a way off from that standard,” he said. Previous ways of thinking lingered, with people unwilling to take personal responsibility for their urban environment, he added. Resilience in Preservation Some buildings are crumbling because of institutional abandonment. Chudna indicated a once-magical villa hidden behind a modern hospital. Its roof had fallen; pigeons made their home among its smashed windows; rubbish lay under a fairytale tower. “Often we don’t win,” she conceded. “This activity is a form of healing for us. We are attempting to save all this heritage and aesthetic value.” In the face of war and development pressures, these volunteers continue their work, one door at a time, believing that to save a city’s heart, you must first cherish its history.