Gillian Hopwood (born in 1927, Rochdae U.K) is a graduate of the Architectural Association School of Architecture, and a member of the Royal Institute of British Architects.

Her interest in photography began seriously when she was given a Kodak Box Brownie camera for her 8th birthday; Gillian’s father was also a keen photographer and set up a dark room at home, enabling her to learn to develop her own film and to print, compose and enlarge negatives. This became a useful adjunct to her architectural training which involved visiting and recording buildings as she was able to sell some of her work to the executive architects, many of whom were well known.

Gillian met John Godwin on the first day of term at the AA, and they were married in 1951. In 1954 the couple moved to Lagos where they worked for a London firm of architects. In 1955 they opened their own practice, Godwin and Hopwood in Onikan, Lagos, which developed over the years to have work throughout the Federation and offices in Kaduna, Kano, Jos, Maiduguri and Warri. In 1989 the practice merged with that of Tunde Kuye and Associates and continues today as GHK Architects.

Gillian was active in the Business and Professional Women’s Association from its inception in 1963, was Hon Treasurer and also architect of the Lagos Motherless Babies Home which was housed in buildings at the end of Marina. She later served as Vice President and President of the Soroptimist International.

Gillian was awarded the Officer of the Order of the Federal Republic (OFR) award by the Nigerian Government and both she and John have become honorary Nigerian citizens. They are retired and now spend their time writing and publishing books: The Architecture of Demas Nwoko, Sandbank City – Lagos at 150, and A Photographer’s Odyssey – Lagos Island 1954 – 2014