Foreign Trade Zone

This Art Deco-style poster by Jack Rivolta celebrates a landmark moment in American commercial history: the opening of the United States’ first Foreign Trade Zone on Staten Island on February 1, 1937. Created during the Great Depression, the artwork captures the era’s push for economic revitalization through the expansion of international commerce. The design features a stylized fleet of ocean liners, symbolizing the modern industrial might of New York City as a global maritime hub.

The establishment of this zone under the Foreign-Trade Zones Act of 1934 was a direct response to the protectionist trade policies of the early 1930s. By allowing goods to be landed, handled, and manufactured without immediate customs intervention, the zone aimed to stimulate domestic employment and trade activity. Commissioned by the City of New York Department of Docks during Mayor Fiorello La Guardia’s administration, the poster reflects a period of significant civic investment and the city's ambition to lead the nation’s economic recovery through pioneering infrastructure and trade policy.