On top of many collectors’ wishlists for decades, and a rare find in “superb and unrestored condition,” this French Nestlé’s Milk sign is a cubist masterpiece by Italian artist Paolo Federico Garretto (1903–1991).

Garretto was born in Naples and studied architecture in Rome, but devoted himself to graphic design as a student. He initially worked as a political cartoonist, becoming an international artistic star in the 1920s, known for his Art Deco style. During the 1930s, he also worked as a publicity painter in London and Paris. He then moved to Turin as a correspondent and designer for Gazzetta del Popolo, working in Paris and New York. His caricatures attracted attention from foreign newspapers and magazines, becoming a regular collaborator for titles such as Vanity Fair, The New Yorker, Fortune, and House & Garden. After moving to the United States and living in New York, he was forced to return to Italy after the outbreak of World War II. His refusal to caricature Roosevelt and other Allied political leaders led to his deportation and imprisonment in Hungary until 1942. In the postwar period, he worked for Epoca magazine.
In 1956, the Italian Advertising Federation awarded him the gold medal.
Garretto passed away on August 3, 1989, at the Princess Grace Hotel in Monte Carlo, where he had lived for many years.

Paolo Garretto’s Nestlé’s Milk enamel sign also exists in a larger English version as a flat sign (not curved), with the text Nestlé’s Chocolate.