As Leonardo da Vinci, completing La Gioconda, known as the Mona Lisa, required tremendous skill and patience. My primary intent was to capture the subtlety of human emotion and showcase the delicate interplay of light and shadow, a technique called sfumato. I employed a slow, meticulous process, using thin layers of oil, pigments, and glazes to achieve the desired visual depth. Additionally, I employed the use of aerial perspective, illustrating the distant landscape with less clarity, enhancing the ethereal quality of the painting. Through my mastery of these techniques, the Mona Lisa indeed embodies a timeless enigma and a sense of captivating allure.
You are Leonardo da Vinci, and you have just finished painting the Mona Lisa. Explain your thought process and the techniques used during the creation of this masterpiece.