The purpose of this study was to investigate how social workers perceive art therapy and what it means to conduct art therapy at social welfare institutions. The selection of the research subjects was used by purposeful sampling by three people with experience in art therapy as welfare workers who had worked more than 10years. A narrative inquiry was conducted on three people to analyze their perception of art therapy qualitatively. From January 2020 to April 2020, three research participants collected and analyzed data through pre-interviews, in-depth personal interviews, phone calls, e-mails, and social network service. In the process of the inquiry, the meaning of art therapy in social welfare institutions revealed that “art therapy leads to empathy”, “art therapy is a collaborator toward social welfare practice and common goals”, and “a belief in art therapists”. This process of inquiry provided an opportunity to understand the perception of art therapy and art therapists in social welfare institutions as well as find the meaning of art therapy in clinical sites called social welfare institutions”. From this inquiry, I gained a guideline that redefines my role as an art therapist at social welfare institutions and provides better art therapy services.