Some additional pics.

When I had the original design, the sofa was facing the windows.

Now the sofas are facing towards the fireplace. Living room looks nice and spacious. I will add 2 comfy, nice chairs with a table in the middle by fireplace. But first need to fix the area. All your comments welcomed and appreciated!!

Theres a lot of potential here, but I just wanted to say the wood is absolutely beautiful! The marble too looks nice too in this space. Your choice to remove the base, and both before and after look nice. I see a nice painting or mirror above the fireplace. Protect the painting if you do choose that. Books, ceramic plates and candles can cozy up the space. Lots of potential here.

I hope you saved everything you took away.

I think you might as well put back the mantle you took off if you still have it. What are you imagining would look better? If you don't like classical columns to support it from below or connect it to the upper woodwork you left in place, what would you prefer? Something needs to be on each side of a massive mantel -- and you need a massive mantel --- to the upper woodwork you left in place, and something will need to support a massive mantel on each side below.

What were the tiles you removed -- and why do you now want tile for the fireplace? What would be different? Same with the seating. You say you now want to add seating to the bare space What made you remove the seating that was there?

Be aware you can't just DYI anything you like onto a fireplace. All of this is subject to local firecodes with very specific laws about materials allowed and how close you can put anything to the firebox. The mantel, seating and columns you had were all legal. Whatever you do has to be legal and safe. Put your safety first.

It appears your fireplace is gas. If so, it is considered a gas appliance, not a true fireplace. "As such, they are not regulated by the same safety codes as wood-burning fireplaces, and each model has its own requirements. Some gas fireplaces are built with "zero-clearance" fireboxes, meaning you can put combustible materials right up to the sides, front and bottom. Not all gas fireplaces are zero-clearance, however, and some may require a hearth."

Do you still have the information on the fireplace? That will tell you what you need to know.

From the photos, I'm guessing there is no chimney and the fire box is direct vent.

IMO (I preface my comment because I do not want to read a rude response from a rude person);

the entire wall of wood is a mishmash of design...Greek Revival columns, Craftsman design, paired with a Victorian style beamed ceiling...it is a mongrel, so to speak. To compliment the rest of the beautiful room I would either remove it entirely (maybe someone would want the high gloss wood) or I would trim it down even more and then paint it. If the house were an authentic something, let's say Craftsman, I would not suggest your painting the wood. But, there is nothing of historic value here.

If you didn't like the white columns you removed, you could have someone make for you box-beam type paneled columns to match what exists on the bookcase to the right of the fireplace. Then I might go for some kind of green natural stone surround and raised seating hearth. And let art over the manttel carry everything.

Please let me know what your thoughts are on jazzing up this area?

Looks great without the “columns.” But the projections (for “holding” the columns) in the wood don’t make sense now, so I would see if you can remove them. I think your old mantle, minus its projections, would also work. A classic marble (like calacatta) would be gorgeous in this traditional setting. Would love to see the finished version.

Maybe you can deconstruct the sides of that overhang and salvage the face of the overhang and apply that flush or nearly flush with the face of the paneling below it, because with the supports removed it looks like a wood enclosed kitchen range hood, which I don't think is the look you are going for.

I would just use pieces of stone to replace whatever the stone or tile that you removed.

If you have cable check out No Deno Reno for fireplace inspirations.....she does big homes like yours and does great things with fireplaces. A new season is starting this week I believe, but you can catch her last 2 season's shows for great inspiration

Her blog is the Rambling Redhead and her name is jen todryk I believe....my two cents too.

Good luck

palimpset's idea is one possibility. Another possibility might be to pry off the "range hood" entirely and just leave the wood columns (pointed to with blue) on each side

Then you cover up what's left in the middle between the wood columns with board/drywall, and join the 2 remaining wood columns with a piece of crown molding at the top.

Then you have a blank space for art. You can blast all the old-fashioned look away with a riveting giant piece of Pop Art (Ray charles or David Bowie or Beyonce, you pick) -- or you could grid-mirror the whole space, or you could mural the space (h/t Paul Vortman)

That still leaves you with a lot to figure out below. If you want a mantel you will need to support it with something to look right -- columns or corbels.

Painting all that finished paneled wood for that entire wall would be incredibly tedious time consuming and $$$$$ for ultimately just a suburbaniing effect. You could rip out every bit of it (maybe -- who knows what's behind it?)

But don't try any of this at home until you come up with a vision plus a real world plan you know you can afford to execute to completion.

PS -- just to be clear, I too would have removed the white columns at some point. I think I would have stared at them a long time to figure out what I wanted instead and maybe -- who knows? -- I would have considered smoked gray acrylic columns to replace them, or some kind of spiral sculpture that was 3-D laser cut --- ??? And I probably would put Ray Charles up there and shag rug on the floor.

Just a bit worried Humpty Dumpty is going to need more than all the king's horses and men to get something you are happy with at an affordable cost.

Tile it with black basalt. The black basalt will look elegant and help tone down the embellishments in your room. No artwork of dead or living singers/music players. I would bag the mirror--not a fan of its embellishments. You could stick the TV where the mirror used to be (research first whether the heat will hurt TV).

If you really want a mantle, then a simple unadorned piece of wood that matches the color of existing wood across the top. You could try to reuse what you have ripped out to create your mantel, but that might be too heavy. Fill the area outside your fireplace with a 3" high black basalt tiled platform or just tile it with black basalt flat with the existing floor.

might work!

https://www.houzz.com/photos/query/basalt-stone-fireplace

Agree with previous comments, remove the "range top", stone surround, nice wooden mantel. Something like this?

I used super white marble.