When Ruth-Ann Thorn opened her Exclusive Collections art gallery in the heart of the Gaslamp Quarter in 2023, she hinted there was more to come.
It’s here.
A member of the Rincon Band of Luiseño Indians, Thorn is likely one of the only Native Americans to own property in the history of the 200-year-old Gaslamp Quarter. (Not the gallery, though, she leases that space.)
Exclusive Collections at 621 Fifth Avenue does have a neighbor with a familiar owner — Thorn purchased the historic Yuma building. She’s ready to open a retail store called Native Star on the first floor of the Yuma Building.
The store will feature works of Native Americans that honor culture and heritage through various art forms.
In a space below sidewalk level, Thorn is also about to open a speakeasy.
It’s like we’re taking back space that was once ours,” Thorn says.
She’s lived in San Diego for 57 years. Thorn’s hometown is the Rincon Indian Reservation. Prior to the arrival of the casino (Harrah’s Resort SoCal), life on the reservation was tough, she says. There weren’t a lot of opportunities.
“My mom is an artist and I had a chance to work in a gallery in my early 20s,” Thorn says. “I found it to be healing, and quickly developed a passion for helping others curate collections.”
She opened her first gallery in 1998 in La Jolla. Then came one in Fashion Valley shopping center in 2000, quickly followed by a gallery in the Gaslamp and one in Seaport Village. For a time, Thorn was also in Las Vegas at the Forum Shops at Caesars, Laguna Beach, Beverly Hills, and in Breckenridge, Colorado. Now she’s back in the Gaslamp Quarter, and on Cedros Avenue in Solana Beach.
In purchasing the three-story, Victorian-style Yuma Building, built in the 1880s, Thorn knew she was inheriting history, and likely a ghost or two. She claims the ghosts appear to be friendly toward a female property owner.
The building was the site of the “Great Raid of 1912.” At the time, San Diego’s police chief was being pressured to empty out downtown brothels. It’s reported that 138 ladies of the evening were rounded up and handed train tickets out of town. (Note: Many purchased round-trip tickets and were back the next day.)
Now that Thorn is running an art gallery, retail store and a speakeasy in the heart of downtown San Diego, she’s got no plans of leaving town.
A free ribbon-cutting ceremony for Native Star is schedule for 6 p.m. on Friday, May 30. Along with music and a traditional drum circle, each of the 18 federally recognized tribes in San Diego County will be honored.
For more information, go to: Native Star. SDSun
