Conrad Kiesel (1846–1921) was a master of German Salon Painting and a prominent figure in the Berlin Academy. Originally trained as an architect and sculptor, Kiesel pivoted to painting under the tutelage of Wilhelm Sohn in Düsseldorf, where he mastered the art of rendering "materiality"—the tactile quality of luxurious fabrics, silks, and satins. His career was defined by high-level patronage, most notably receiving commissions from Emperor Wilhelm II, and he was eventually granted an honorable professorship at the Berlin Academy. Kiesel's work belongs to the Late 19th-Century Academic Realism period, specifically the "Salon" style, characterized by idealized depictions of elegant society ladies and genre scenes like The Mandolin Player and The Lesson. For a stitcher, a Kiesel design is a masterclass in texture; the way he captured the shimmer of a gown or the soft petals of a rose translates beautifully into a counted cross stitch design, offering a rich, multi-tonal palette that makes the finished piece feel like a piece of high-fashion history.