It initially opened in 1937 and closed in 1953 when the new Kiyevskaya station, intended to replace it, was completed.

The pillars were originally faced with Armenian onyx, but this was replaced with yellowish Gazgan marble after ten years.

The platform is intricately patterned with Ukrainian designs executed in red, white, and gray granite.

The three rows of circular ceiling coffers originally housed incandescent light fixtures but these were abandoned in favor of the current three-bladed fluorescent lamps in the 1960s.

Between Kiyevskaya and Smolenskaya is the Smolensky Metro Bridge, which spans the Moskva River.