The Bookcliffs Arts Center in Rifle discovered vandalism on one of its murals last weekend — red spray paint across a scene of aspen trees.

Amy Cox, the center’s groundskeeper and a member at large, said it is the third time the facility has experienced vandalism.

“This is a completely new and totally different tag,” Cox said. “This wasn’t for anyone to see. It’s straight-up vandalism.”

Cox said the placement of the spray paint suggested there was no intent other than to damage the artwork.

“You can’t see it well because it’s in the back and close to the houses near the center,” she said. “It was just hate.”

Cox reported the vandalism to police, but said there is little investigators can do without a larger tagging database.

“They’ve been so kind and understanding every time they’ve come out,” she said.

She believes the vandalism happened Thursday night, Sept, 11, and discovered it the following day.

“I’ve asked neighbors if they have any cameras, but no luck,” Cox said. “Because of the placement, the only accurate cameras are too far away to see anything.”

Cox said the murals on the vandalized shipping containers cost thousands of dollars to create.

“It’s paint, it’s time, it’s the artist’s time and skill,” Cox said. “We struggle for money sometimes.”

Lizz Bailey, vice president of the Bookcliffs Arts Center board, said the tag is unfamiliar.

“The local taggers have their brands,” Bailey said. “This is a new one.”

She said she can’t imagine anyone targeting the organization.

“I don’t want to think it’s anyone with something against the Bookcliffs,” Bailey said. “We’re just here to support the arts.”

She said the center is staffed only by volunteers, with Cox being the only one on site regularly.

“The board are all volunteers, so we don’t staff the center every day,” she said.

Despite the setback, Bailey said the murals were created through a community effort and support has poured in since the vandalism.

“The police have come by, the city put out an alert for us, and we’ve had people reaching out privately to help restore the mural,” she said. “Everyone’s been wonderful.”

Bailey said the board has not decided whether to repaint the aspen trees or create an entirely new mural.

“We’re going to speak to the community members involved in the original mural,” she said. “We’re also hoping to get feedback from the community at large, and we’d like to get it up by early spring.”

Bailey emphasized that the center is open to all types of art, including spray paint.

“If someone wants to do spray paint art, we have space for that without vandalizing other people’s pieces,” she said. “We’d be happy to support a spray paint artist if they were really interested. We’ll give you a side of a building or another space. We’re always looking to support artists, so please don’t vandalize our art.”

The Bookcliffs Arts Center also has several events coming up. Ground restoration days are scheduled from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. the next three Saturdays — Sept. 20, Sept. 27 and Oct. 4.

Saturday morning art classes are available for children from kindergarten through sixth grade, including a sensory class for children with special needs. Other programs include canning, candle-making and wreath-making during Hometown Holidays. The board also hopes to bring back open mic night.

Bailey said the center tries to keep programs affordable, charging only to cover supplies. Teachers donate their time, and members receive a 15% discount on events.

The center also plans to host a paint-and-sip event for adults but is still seeking a teacher.

“We were thinking maybe one of those events could be painting a pair of wooden skis,” Bailey said. “We’re excited for upcoming events.”For more information about the Bookcliffs Arts Center and scheduled programs, visit bookcliffs.org.