A native of Paris, Vibert first studied with his maternal grandfather, the engraver Jean-Pierre- Marie Jazet. He entered the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in 1857 at the age of sixteen and by 1864 had already won a medal at the Salon. Over the course of his career, Vibert became a master of amusing anecdotal scenes which had wide appeal among the sophisticated art patrons of Paris. In À la recherche du temps perdu Proust's Duke of Guermantes says of Vibert, 'The man's got wit to the tips of his fingers.'

A multi-talented figure, Vibert was also a published author, writing for The Century Magazine as well as plays for the Palais Royale, Variétés and the Vaudeville. This penchant for the theatre is clearly evident in the artist's oeuvre, and his interest in storytelling in all its forms most certainly fueled his artistic expression. The critic Stranahan wrote, 'There is much 'story' in all of Vibert's works,' (C.H. Stanahan, A History of French Painting from its Earliest to Latest Practice, New York, 1917, p. 348) but the story is not always obvious to a modern audience. Fortunately, in the last year of his life the artist published the two-volume La Comedie en peinture in which he documented most of his works and provided explanatory narratives for each.

The present work is described in a short play called ‘L’Antichambre de L’Eveché’, the main characters of which are the shoes grouped around the floor grate to dry. The shoes share gossip and thoughts inspired by their owners, who represent clergy, peasants, and the bourgeoisie. They discuss the installation of the monsignor in the magnificent Louis XIV rooms in which they sit, gossip that the monsignor might dismiss his housekeeper for reporting on his thoughts and actions to the Marquise, and if the Breton peasant girl might be there to interview to be the new housekeeper. They also discuss Father Ignace, the scheming monk eavesdropping around the corner, and Father Pamphile, the monk with the bottle tucked under his hat at left, who only attends to his partitioners on happy occasions.

The air of gossip is reflected as well in the actions of the figures in the picture, from Father Ignace peering around the corner, to the whispering footman and secretary in the background, to the monsignor’s face, hidden in the shadows, observing the scene through the door. The poster on the wall at upper left which has become detached to reveal the lower half of a Rocco putto above the scene is typical of the cheeky humor for which Vibert was known. The Journal des Débats described the scene aptly in their review of the Salon, ‘a small scene brimming with humor, Gallic verve, and sharp wit, seasoned here and there with a touch of coarseness.’