House with Chimaeras: Kyiv's Art Nouveau Icon and Symbol of Resistance

The House with Chimaeras in Kyiv, Ukraine, is an Art Nouveau building designed by Polish-Ukrainian architect Władysław Horodecki and constructed from 1901 to 1903. Its facade features realistic animal sculptures by Milanese sculptor Elio Salia, including elephants, rhinoceroses, and eagles, though no actual chimeras. The building's asymmetrical design accommodates a steep slope, with three floors on Bankova Street and six on Ivan Franko Square. It was built using concrete piles and cement, innovative materials for the region at the time. Inside, each floor housed a separate apartment with 8–10 rooms plus servant quarters; Horodecki himself occupied a third-floor apartment. The interior continues the wildlife theme but depicts dead animals, reflecting Horodecki's passion for hunting. In 1911, Horodecki mortgaged the house to fund a six-month safari, later writing and illustrating the book 'In the Jungle of Africa.' He ultimately lost the house due to inability to repay the loan. Legends surround the building, including a false story that Horodecki built it in grief over a daughter's drowning. Since 2005, it has served as the Small Residence of the President of Ukraine. On February 26, 2022, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy filmed a video message in front of the building, declaring 'Our weapon is truth' amid the Russian invasion. The house has become a symbol of Ukrainian resistance.