Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/144178
Destinations W What better place to fall in love with a gunmaker's masterpiece than Beretta's beautiful gallery in the heart of New York City. S By Doug Painter hether it's admiring a Rembrandt in the Metropolitan Museum of Art or trying to decipher a Jackson Pollock in the Museum of Modern Art, art lovers can rightfully claim that New York City is one of the world's foremost centers of fine art. When viewing one of the great masterpieces or a contemporary canvas, it's art you can look at but, of course, not touch. There is one gallery in Gotham, however, that's quite different. Here, you can not only set your gaze on an Italian masterpiece, but also pick it up and bring to your shoulder. And should you so desire, even swing it around a bit! The Beretta Gallery of New York, the company's flagship store, can be P O R T I N G C 40 L A S S I found at 718 Madison Avenue – right smack dab in the heart of midtown Manhattan. Like a Baptist Church on the Vegas Strip, a gun store on one of the city's great avenues might, these days, seem to be a triumph of hope over experience. But that's hardly the case. For almost 20 years the Gallery has ministered to a faithful and, indeed, growing flock. Apparently, there's many a high-rise dweller that still has the heart of a hunter. A good measure of the Gallery's success is that it's not just an elegant store befitting Beretta's centuriesold outdoor heritage, but also an inviting "outpost" for the city's sporting enthusiasts. One month hunters and shooters might gather C S