I would just do art work Less to dust

They're intended for art display, but art means different things to different people. Do what works best for the artwork you own and what pleases your eye the most. There is no "wrong" here.

These are our niches in the foyer, where we have hung larger canvas paintings.

I think your idea sounds nice. You could also paint them dark & use white or clear glass shelving to display photos, or whatever you'd like to display. Even some small green plants would look nice such as succulents.

Unless you really like them I would have the ledge removed and the dry wall repaired.

drywall over them.

Most are filling these in and resurfacing which provides much better surfaces for galleries and large art.

Thanks for the suggestions, all! We are trying to work with what he have here and aren’t looking to reconstruct the space. I appreciate your thoughts.

Yup - I’d get rid of them altogether

Large scale family photos?

If they stay, shelves are not the direction to head

I would place pairs of coordinated art inside the niche. You don't have to paint the interior. The art should be enough.

I thought the proportion of these pieces was nice and the dramatic wall color kind of minimizes the niche:

This is an interesting idea, although I don't love the fixture they chose:

Beeramid...

Ok if you are leaving them, how deep are they?

So many great ideas!
Flo, the recessed areas are about 6.5 inches deep and the ledge sticks out a little more than an inch further.

I would do hand painted wallpaper panels- or something that looks handpainted.. like this Schumacher seen in this bedroom- you can buy 2 “short panels” and then trim them to fit. Then maybe a brass bird in front on the ledge or something.

If you keep them I certainly would not paint the interiors a strong contrasting color; that looks very 80’s and what people did (and are still doing) with different tray ceiling reveals. Instead I would use a subtle shade difference from the wall color, more of a tone on tone effect.

I’d have to do something quirky and interesting

What is your style in the rest of the house?

How many alcoves are there? I would not do shelves with a lot of little items--looks too busy and yes, so much more to dust. Keep the color the same as the surrounding walls and just place one piece of framed artwork that fills the space.

No shelves but I do think they add something to that large expanse of wall that matches the doorway so I would just add a piece of art in each one and be done.Not anything like a gallery in each one keep it simple.,Make sure you have lighting either in them or aimed at them .

I like Ida's use of the niches when there is more than one niche. If it were just one niche on a wall shelves, vases or sculpture would be ok but with mutiple I think highlighting personal favorite art is lovely. I appreciate how yours mimic the doorway.

Sculpture or vase that have a similar look in each. Paint interior slightly darker for the tone on tone look which will not look dated. Use the KISS principle (Keep it simple silly).

IMHO they are intended for, and need, framed art.

A sculpture big enough for the space vertically might be too wide for the shelf, it seems.

Alas, the art should be lit as well. All art should be, but in a niche, especially.

Thank you, Roarah. We actually have four in our foyer, and they work nicely with the 20+ foot ceiling to highlight a portion of our Native American art collection. Sort of sets the tone for the collection found in the rest of the house.

Not everyone appreciates the niches. I get that. But that doesn't mean there aren't ways to make good, attractive use of them, and I like that the OP is working towards doing just that. It's easy to find a creative solution for them IMO.

We have one other niche in the small entry into our master bedroom and that's where I've hung one of my favorite pieces, a 1920s photo of a Hopi basket maker in a frame made by my father. The ledge lends itself well to a Hopi basket and a couple of small pieces of pottery.

Thank you all so much for the discussion. Although I love the quirky sculptures ( and that is a very ME thing to choose), I think the alcoves are a bit too big. After seeing so many examples and ideas here I think we’re going to start searching for two coordinating art pieces. The style of the home is Mediterranean, we just moved in a year ago and I’ve been trying to update little by little. The second floor has gotten neglected over the last year, so that’s my project now.

Thanks again everyone!

Large pieces of art for sure. The alcoves are too narrow for shelves, vases, or anything else.

I don't care for framed art in the alcoves either--- maybe it is a regional thing I just don't appreciate? I do like the chunky candle holders and some of the lighting options as they don't look like the square peg in round hole kind of thing.

Unless it is very typical of your regional style, I'd be inclined to drywall over them.

Would having a artist paint murals be too old fashioned?

Love the unique sculpture ideas. Blank space is great way to highly sculptures.

A deer head and a moose head...Just kidding! The house seems like it's very nice, probably some beautiful artwork. Personally, I would have them removed if I had the funds.

Was actually thinking about a stylized deer head and buffalo head prints! They both make me think of my hometown. My fiancé is from Seattle and I'm from Buffalo, so I was thinking of doing something that references both of those locales. Found a beautiful painting of Niagara Falls, but I couldn’t find a coordinating painting hat had anything to do with Washington State or Seattle (all photos). I could do two large framed photographs from each location. Still looking though.

Searching around the house today and I found a large framed tapestry that my late grandmother started and my late mother completed. It’s a very special piece to me of course. Considering putting it in one of the alcoves. But it would be hard to find a coordinating piece for the other, and to be honest it’s really not the style I was looking for. Always hard to make up my mind.

Paint the interior edge rather than the back.

I like niches. I bought my older home because it had a phone niche so I see them as architectural features literally adding depth to the space. I also think they are fitting for a Mediterranean house. Using these features to feature your most beloved pieces, like your mom's piece, is perfect to me.

I'd love them, if I also found art i like to hang in them. I love what Ida Claire has done with hers.

Thanks again everyone!

Framedart.com is having a big sale right now so I ended up ordering a print of one of my favorite Van Goghs. The subject matter has some personal significance to me, and the colors are similar to the colors in my mom's tapestry. So I think it will look nice! I might add a candlestick or two to the ledges, we'll see.

Our new side table arrived for the dining room today. Maybe I'll put those shelves I wanted over it. Would like to display a new small sculptures and keepsakes from traveling.

Wayfair art, etsy is good too

Crazy I know, but the moment I saw the niches I immediately visualized fun & colorful prints. I like the niches and putting the usual things in one would be boring. Something fun and eye catching. My first thought was colorful jigsaw puzzles but that would take forever.