He started painting the landscapes of his native Algeria at an early age. His family moved to Paris in 1899 and encouraged his emerging passion for pictorial art. In 1902 Valensi entered the Julian Academy where he studied painting under the direction of Jules Lefebvre and Tony Robert-Fleury. In 1905 Valensi exhibits at the Salon des Orientalists and in 1907 he exhibits at the Salon des Independants.