The Sausalito Art Festival has some surprises in store for art, music, and wine lovers.

When the festival gates open for Labor Day weekend, visitors will find a reinvented and modernized event with a new sculpture garden at the entrance, high-tech art exhibits, new branding throughout the grounds, and wine experiences worthy of Napa and Sonoma.

"After 67 years, it was time for a change," says executive director Louis Briones, a former member of the Sausalito Art Festival Board of Trustees, who notes that the Festival has changed physically, visually, and experientially this year.

The grounds have been expanded with a new entrance, a new main stage location, and new artist tent layouts. For a streamlined look, the festival has dispensed with many of its smaller tents in favor of pavilions.

This year's wine bars will highlight regional vintners: Look out for the Rutherford Ranch Napa Valley Wine Experience, featuring Rutherford wineries with ambassadors to help educate visitors about the wines, much like they do at their wineries.

Visually, the festival grounds include all new graphics, and a fresh, contemporary group of artists will be exhibiting—artists were jury-selected from applicants in 41 states and 12 countries. New exhibits include a cutting-edge Art Tech Pavilion featuring augmented and virtual reality displays; and the Art of Transportation exhibit with a Chris Craft boat, Airstream trailer, and Jaguar cars. The highlight of the festival will be three-days of music performed on two stages with bands including Blues Traveler, ZZ Ward, Blood, Sweat & Tears, and many others.

Changed to the children's program include partnerships with the Bay Area Discovery Museum, which is bringing their "Messy Art Festival" to Sausalito's Children's Adventure Land.

"It's an art festival and that will always be our roots," says Briones, "but music, food, wine, and exhibits are major components of the festival. It's almost like three festivals happening at the same time. It truly is a festival like none other."

With all new branding, a new layout for the festival grounds, and provocative new exhibits, the Sausalito Art Festival is the Bay Area's biggest celebration of artistry.

// Aug. 31 through Sep. 2; for tickets ($30-$100) and information, visit sausalitoartfestival.org.