- During the opening of Be Casa Barakaldo, local artist Alberto Muriel created “Refugio” live, a piece based on the real-life experiences of its residents and their daily lives within the community.
- The initiative marked the opening of this new community—the first outside Madrid—and highlights what this phase of life entails: arriving in a new place, building connections and developing a sense of belonging.
- Drawing on conversations with residents, the work captures ideas such as home, stability and tranquillity, translating them into visual language in a piece created live.
What does it really mean to feel at home? For many Be Casa residents, it means finding a space where, as well as living, connections, stability and new beginnings are fostered.
Be Casa, the innovative flexible accommodation model promoted and managed by Greystar, has sought to reflect this emotional dimension through “Refugio”, an illustration created live alongside local illustrator and artist Alberto Muriel during the Barakaldo Open Day.
The work stems from insights gathered directly from residents, who shared how they live and feel in their day-to-day lives at Be Casa. Drawing on these experiences, the artist has created a collective piece that translates the process of adapting to a new environment into visual language.
A work that gives form to what one feels
“Refugio” represents the experience of starting afresh in an unfamiliar place and, over time, making it one’s own. At the centre, a core symbolises home as a space of calm and protection, whilst the lines around it evoke a community in constant motion.
The piece captures the experience of starting out in a new place and how, over time, a sense of belonging develops. This process is influenced by factors such as having a space of one’s own, sharing this phase with others and finding stability.
This sense of refuge arises because, beyond the physical space, residents find small certainties that accompany this vital moment: the warmth of a community going through similar stages, the comfort of having services that ease day-to-day life and the opportunity to socialise in spaces designed to foster connection without forcing anything. It is not something that is imposed, but rather something that arises naturally, almost without realising it, when an environment enables each person to start afresh calmly, at their own pace, feeling supported.
As Marino Laso, Senior Marketing Manager at Greystar, explains, “The idea of translating this into art stems from a prior intention: to understand what Be Casa really means to those who live there. In conversations with residents, different ways of describing their daily lives emerge, but so does a common thread: the feeling of finding a place that supports, that welcomes, and that becomes a real source of support at a time of change. ‘Refugio’ stems from that shared feeling and translates it into an image built from their own experiences.”
Marino adds: “Starting from scratch in a new city can happen anywhere, but what makes the difference is how Be Casa facilitates that process. Everything is designed to provide a homely warmth from day one: the community, the residents, the communal spaces, the choice of materials and the décor. We are deeply proud that those who live with us feel Be Casa is a true refuge”.
The initiative in Barakaldo comes at a significant time for the brand, which is continuing its expansion into new cities across Spain. In this context, Be Casa continues to develop a model that combines fully equipped apartments, integrated services and communal spaces designed to foster a sense of community, underpinned by a core principle: the importance of the community that forms around it. A community that is being built both in Madrid — where Be Casa has four locations in Valdebebas, San Sebastián de los Reyes, Rivas-Vaciamadrid and Alcobendas — and now in Barakaldo, in the Basque Country.
Through initiatives such as this, Be Casa is forging its own narrative, exploring new ways of conveying what it means to live there.
About BE CASA
Be Casa is a flexible housing model that provides high-quality housing solutions for society. It has four Be Casa communities in the Community of Madrid, one in Barakaldo and another in Sant Cugat, offering more than 4,300 flats. Be Casa works to improve people’s quality of life, creating spaces and environments that facilitate a balance between privacy and connection with the world, between professional development and personal well-being, and between the individual and the community. Be Casa is professionally managed by Greystar.
To find out more, visit https://www.becasaapartments.com/en/home
About GREYSTAR
Greystar is a leading global investor, manager and developer of rental residential assets. Headquartered in Charleston, South Carolina, Greystar manages real estate assets valued at over $221 billion across nearly 224 markets worldwide, with offices in the United States, Europe, Latin America and the Asia-Pacific region. Greystar is the largest operator of rental apartments in the United States, where it manages approximately 768,000 beds, and has a robust institutional investment management platform with approximately $58.2 billion in assets under management, including over $24 billion in assets under development. Greystar was founded by Bob Faith in 1993 with the aim of becoming a world-class service provider in the residential rental sector. To find out more, visit www.greystar.com
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