Seen as a follower of Alexander Tamanian,[4] Israyelian designed some of Soviet Armenia's most prominent structures, including the Sardarapat Memorial, the Yerevan Wine Factory and several churches, both in Armenia and abroad, most notably St. Sargis in Yerevan and St. Vartan in New York.

Israyelian was born in Tiflis (modern-day Tbilisi, capital of Georgia), then part of the Russian Empire, on 17 September [O.S.

His father, Sargis, was a philologist and folklorist born in Shusha (Shushi), Karabakh, while his mother, Mariam (née Hakhnazarian) was a teacher, originally from Nakhichevan.

[5] He attended an Armenian school in Tiflis and continued his education at the State Academy of Arts of Georgia, from which he graduated in 1928 as an architect.

He thereafter continued his education at the Ilya Repin Leningrad Institute for Painting, Sculpture and Architecture (formerly the Imperial Academy of Arts) until 1936.

He completed a number of projects there, including the retirement home in Nor Kharberd and the dormitory of the Metallurgical Technical College in Yerevan.

[9] Israyelian then worked at the Yerevan Polytechnic Institute first as a lab technician, then as an assistant, and after 1947, as an associate professor.

[9] From 1942, Israyelian started working in the Committee for the Protection of Monuments of Armenia, whose chairman was academician Hovsep Orbeli.

[9] During World War II, Israyelian also served in an anti-aircraft defense unit based in Yerevan.

In addition to architectural works, he made sketches for applied art, some of which were accepted for wide production.

[9] He closely worked with the Armenian Apostolic Church, under Catholicos Vazgen I and was part of the architectural committee of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin from 1956 to 1972.

[2][14] Israyelian created two memorials dedicated to the victims of the Armenian genocide, when its 50th anniversary was commemorated in 1965.

It features several crosses inspired by traditional khachkars and a sword and shield, symbolizing Armenian self-defense efforts during the genocide.

[22] Israyelian designed and co-designed three churches in the Armenian diaspora: Holy Forty Martyrs Church in Milan, Italy (1958), St. Vartan Armenian Cathedral in New York City (1968),[23] and Surp Nerses Shnorhali Cathedral in Montevideo, Uruguay (1968).

[7][34] In the same year, on a small hill on the road to the temple of Garni, a monument known as Charents Arch was erected.

[7] The monument is inspired by the coat of arms of the Proshian noble family found inside Geghard.

[17] Israyelian designed decorative drinking fountains at the courtyards of St. Hripsime (1958), Geghard (1958/59), Etchmiadzin Cathedral (1967), St. Gayane (1972),[19] and in numerous villages and towns around Armenia (1943–46), including Parakar, Karbi, Stepanavan, Sisian, Byurakan, Artik, Goris, Ashtarak, Alaverdi, and Taperakan.

[17] He also designed some of the buildings of the Kanaker Aluminium Plant (KanAZ) in 1948–50, a campus of the Yerevan Physics Institute on the slopes of Mount Aragats (1960), a large hotel (pansionat) in Sochi, Russia (1977), several residential buildings in Yerevan and other structures.

[41] The Municipality of Yerevan stated that Israyelian's son, Vahagn, had sold the house earlier and gave formal permission to demolish it.