We are saddened to hear of the passing of AA alum Gillian Hopwood. Gillian kindly donated her archive of student drawings to the AA ten years ago and these can now be explored in our Archives; she also contributed a fascinating oral history interview to our AA XX 100 project, which you can listen to here .
Abiola Fayemi, MD of GHK Architects, Nigeria, wrote:
‘GHK Architects announces with deep sadness the passing of Gillian Hopwood FNIA MFR on 6 November 2025 at the age of 98. Together with her husband, she founded Godwin and Hopwood – now GHK Architects – in 1955 and dedicated six decades to architectural practice in Nigeria until their retirement in 2015. She was mother to Tony and Carey and grandmother to Ben.
Gillian will be remembered for her extraordinary mentorship, sharp wit, and warm sense of humour. Her legacy endures in the countless lives she touched, and she will be profoundly missed.’
The Honorary General Secretary of the Nigerian Institute of Architects also issued the following tribute:
‘On behalf of the President, Mobolaji Adeniyi FNIA, we hereby announce, with gratitude to God for a life of purpose, impact and immense legacies, the call to glory of our dear senior colleague and Fellow of the Institute, Gillian Hopwood FNIA, OFR (F20) at 98 on Thursday 6th November, 2025.
Born in 1927 in Rochdale, UK she studied at the Architectural Association (AA) School of Architecture and was also a member of the Royal Institute of British Architects.
In 1954, along with her late husband John Godwin FNIA OFR, she moved to Lagos where they worked for a London firm of architects before setting up their practice, Godwin and Hopwood, at Onikan in 1955. For more than 44 years they took on architectural commissions throughout the Nigeria and established offices in Kaduna, Kano, Jos, Maiduguri and Warri. In 1989 the firm merged with that of Tunde Kuye & Associates and has continued since then till this day as GHK Architects Ltd.
Gillian Hopwood was very active in the Business and Professional Women’s Association from its inception in 1963, and was its Honorary Treasurer. She was the architect of the Lagos Motherless Babies Home which was housed in buildings at the end of the Marina, Lagos and later served as Vice President and President of the Soroptimist International.
Gillian Hopwood FNIA was conferred with the Officer of the Order of the Federal Republic (OFR) award by the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria after she and her husband had become honorary Nigerian citizens. After she retired, she and her husband spent their time taking photographs and documenting as well as writing on building in major Nigerian cities and architects and architecture. Some of their books include The Architecture of Demas Nwoko, Sandbank City – Lagos at 150 and A Photographer’s Odyssey – Lagos Island 1954–2014.
She was mother to Tony an Architect and Carey.
Gillian will be remembered for her extraordinary mentorship, sharp wit and warm sense of humour. Her legacy endures in the countless lives she touched, and she will be profoundly missed by all who knew her especially the very senior members of the Institute, friends and family.’
Read tributes to Gillian and contribute your own at this link.