diff --git a/.github/workflows/ci.yml b/.github/workflows/ci.yml
index f0a7245e1..c9b8470cf 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/ci.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/ci.yml
@@ -45,6 +45,7 @@ jobs:
             openimageio_ver: v2.4.13.0
             python_ver: 2.7
             pybind11_ver: v2.4.2
+            setenvs: export CMAKE_VERSION=3.15.5
           - desc: clang9/C++14 llvm9 oiio-release boost1.66 avx2 exr2.3 py2.7
             nametag: linux-clang9-llvm9
             os: ubuntu-20.04
@@ -57,6 +58,7 @@ jobs:
             python_ver: 2.7
             # pybind11_ver: v2.9.0
             simd: avx
+            setenvs: export CMAKE_VERSION=3.15.5
           - desc: gcc6/C++14 llvm10 py3.7 boost1.70 exr2.4 oiio2.2 sse4
             nametag: linux-vfx2020
             os: ubuntu-latest
@@ -169,6 +171,7 @@ jobs:
             pybind11_ver: v2.6.2
             simd: 0
             setenvs: export PUGIXML_VERSION=v1.8
+                            CMAKE_VERSION=3.15.5
 
           # Address and leak sanitizers
           - desc: sanitizers
diff --git a/CMakeLists.txt b/CMakeLists.txt
index 9e70a7d5d..3e8c00c69 100644
--- a/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
 # SPDX-License-Identifier: BSD-3-Clause
 # https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage
 
-cmake_minimum_required (VERSION 3.12)
+cmake_minimum_required (VERSION 3.15)
 
 set (OSL_VERSION "1.13.5.0")
 set (OSL_VERSION_OVERRIDE "" CACHE STRING
diff --git a/INSTALL.md b/INSTALL.md
index aefc02ecc..879eb2cd4 100644
--- a/INSTALL.md
+++ b/INSTALL.md
@@ -12,7 +12,7 @@ Dependencies
 OSL requires the following dependencies or tools.
 NEW or CHANGED dependencies since the last major release are **bold**.
 
-* Build system: [CMake](https://cmake.org/) 3.12 or newer (tested through 3.26)
+* Build system: [CMake](https://cmake.org/) **3.15 or newer** (tested through 3.27)
 
 * A suitable C++14 or C++17 compiler to build OSL itself, which may be any of:
    - GCC 6.1 or newer (tested through gcc 12.1)
@@ -92,9 +92,16 @@ Here are the steps to check out, build, and test the OSL distribution:
    options, and note that 'make nuke' will blow everything away for the
    freshest possible compile.
 
-   NOTE: If the build breaks due to compiler warnings which have been
-   elevated to errors, you can try "make clean" followed by
-   "make STOP_ON_WARNING=0", that create a build that will only stop for
+   You can also ignore the top level Makefile wrapper, and instead use
+   CMake directly:
+
+       cmake -B build -S .
+       cmake --build build --target install
+
+   NOTE: If the build breaks due to compiler warnings which have been elevated
+   to errors, you can try "make clean" followed by "make STOP_ON_WARNING=0",
+   or if using cmake directly, add `-DSTOP_ON_WARNING=0` to the cmake
+   configuration command. That will create a build that will only stop for
    full errors, not warnings.
 
 4. After compilation, you'll end up with a full OSL distribution in
diff --git a/src/build-scripts/build_cmake.bash b/src/build-scripts/build_cmake.bash
index f4460d515..8db9429dd 100755
--- a/src/build-scripts/build_cmake.bash
+++ b/src/build-scripts/build_cmake.bash
@@ -12,7 +12,7 @@ set -ex
 echo "Building cmake"
 uname
 
-CMAKE_VERSION=${CMAKE_VERSION:=3.12.4}
+CMAKE_VERSION=${CMAKE_VERSION:=3.18.5}
 LOCAL_DEPS_DIR=${LOCAL_DEPS_DIR:=${PWD}/ext}
 CMAKE_INSTALL_DIR=${CMAKE_INSTALL_DIR:=${LOCAL_DEPS_DIR}/cmake}
 
diff --git a/src/build-scripts/build_opencolorio.bash b/src/build-scripts/build_opencolorio.bash
index 720cf325e..77a18e2d3 100755
--- a/src/build-scripts/build_opencolorio.bash
+++ b/src/build-scripts/build_opencolorio.bash
@@ -11,13 +11,14 @@ set -ex
 
 # Which OCIO to retrieve, how to build it
 OPENCOLORIO_REPO=${OPENCOLORIO_REPO:=https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenColorIO.git}
-OPENCOLORIO_VERSION=${OPENCOLORIO_VERSION:=v1.1.1}
+OPENCOLORIO_VERSION=${OPENCOLORIO_VERSION:=v2.2.1}
 
 # Where to install the final results
 LOCAL_DEPS_DIR=${LOCAL_DEPS_DIR:=${PWD}/ext}
 OPENCOLORIO_SOURCE_DIR=${OPENCOLORIO_SOURCE_DIR:=${LOCAL_DEPS_DIR}/OpenColorIO}
 OPENCOLORIO_BUILD_DIR=${OPENCOLORIO_BUILD_DIR:=${LOCAL_DEPS_DIR}/OpenColorIO-build}
 OPENCOLORIO_INSTALL_DIR=${OPENCOLORIO_INSTALL_DIR:=${LOCAL_DEPS_DIR}/dist}
+OPENCOLORIO_BUILD_TYPE=${OPENCOLORIO_BUILD_TYPE:=Release}
 OPENCOLORIO_CXX_FLAGS=${OPENCOLORIO_CXX_FLAGS:="-Wno-unused-function -Wno-deprecated-declarations -Wno-cast-qual -Wno-write-strings"}
 # Just need libs:
 OPENCOLORIO_BUILDOPTS="-DOCIO_BUILD_APPS=OFF -DOCIO_BUILD_NUKE=OFF \
@@ -42,13 +43,12 @@ cd ${OPENCOLORIO_SOURCE_DIR}
 
 echo "git checkout ${OPENCOLORIO_VERSION} --force"
 git checkout ${OPENCOLORIO_VERSION} --force
-mkdir -p ${OPENCOLORIO_BUILD_DIR}
-cd ${OPENCOLORIO_BUILD_DIR}
-time cmake -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release \
+time cmake -S . -B ${OPENCOLORIO_BUILD_DIR} \
+           -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=${OPENCOLORIO_BUILD_TYPE} \
            -DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX=${OPENCOLORIO_INSTALL_DIR} \
            -DCMAKE_CXX_FLAGS="${OPENCOLORIO_CXX_FLAGS}" \
-           ${OPENCOLORIO_BUILDOPTS} ${OPENCOLORIO_SOURCE_DIR}
-time cmake --build . --config Release --target install
+           ${OPENCOLORIO_BUILDOPTS}
+time cmake --build ${OPENCOLORIO_BUILD_DIR} --config Release --target install
 popd
 
 # ls -R ${OPENCOLORIO_INSTALL_DIR}
diff --git a/src/build-scripts/build_openexr.bash b/src/build-scripts/build_openexr.bash
index c0b9457e2..672f1940d 100755
--- a/src/build-scripts/build_openexr.bash
+++ b/src/build-scripts/build_openexr.bash
@@ -44,8 +44,8 @@ git checkout ${OPENEXR_VERSION} --force
 
 if [[ ${OPENEXR_VERSION} == "v2.3.0" ]] ; then
     # Simplified setup for 2.3+
-    cd ${OPENEXR_BUILD_DIR}
-    cmake -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=${OPENEXR_BUILD_TYPE} \
+    cmake   -S . -B ${OPENEXR_BUILD_DIR} \
+            -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=${OPENEXR_BUILD_TYPE} \
             -DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX="${OPENEXR_INSTALL_DIR}" \
             -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH="${CMAKE_PREFIX_PATH}" \
             -DILMBASE_PACKAGE_PREFIX="${OPENEXR_INSTALL_DIR}" \
@@ -54,11 +54,11 @@ if [[ ${OPENEXR_VERSION} == "v2.3.0" ]] ; then
             -DOPENEXR_BUILD_PYTHON_LIBS=0 \
             -DCMAKE_CXX_FLAGS="${OPENEXR_CXX_FLAGS}" \
             ${OPENEXR_CMAKE_FLAGS} ${OPENEXR_SOURCE_DIR}
-    time cmake --build . --target install --config ${OPENEXR_BUILD_TYPE}
+    time cmake --build ${OPENEXR_BUILD_DIR} --target install --config ${OPENEXR_BUILD_TYPE}
 else
     # Simplified setup for 2.4+
-    cd ${OPENEXR_BUILD_DIR}
-    cmake -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=${OPENEXR_BUILD_TYPE} \
+    cmake   -S . -B ${OPENEXR_BUILD_DIR} \
+            -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=${OPENEXR_BUILD_TYPE} \
             -DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX="${OPENEXR_INSTALL_DIR}" \
             -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH="${CMAKE_PREFIX_PATH}" \
             -DILMBASE_PACKAGE_PREFIX="${OPENEXR_INSTALL_DIR}" \
@@ -71,7 +71,7 @@ else
             -DCMAKE_INSTALL_LIBDIR=lib \
             -DCMAKE_CXX_FLAGS="${OPENEXR_CXX_FLAGS}" \
             ${OPENEXR_CMAKE_FLAGS} ${OPENEXR_SOURCE_DIR}
-    time cmake --build . --target install --config ${OPENEXR_BUILD_TYPE}
+    time cmake --build ${OPENEXR_BUILD_DIR} --target install --config ${OPENEXR_BUILD_TYPE}
 fi
 
 popd
diff --git a/src/build-scripts/build_pugixml.bash b/src/build-scripts/build_pugixml.bash
index 9cf64699c..0bf7c206d 100755
--- a/src/build-scripts/build_pugixml.bash
+++ b/src/build-scripts/build_pugixml.bash
@@ -11,7 +11,7 @@ set -ex
 
 # Repo and branch/tag/commit of pugixml to download if we don't have it yet
 PUGIXML_REPO=${PUGIXML_REPO:=https://github.com/zeux/pugixml.git}
-PUGIXML_VERSION=${PUGIXML_VERSION:=v1.10}
+PUGIXML_VERSION=${PUGIXML_VERSION:=v1.11.4}
 
 # Where to put pugixml repo source (default to the ext area)
 PUGIXML_SRC_DIR=${PUGIXML_SRC_DIR:=${PWD}/ext/pugixml}
@@ -34,17 +34,18 @@ if [[ ! -e ${PUGIXML_SRC_DIR} ]] ; then
     git clone ${PUGIXML_REPO} ${PUGIXML_SRC_DIR}
 fi
 cd ${PUGIXML_SRC_DIR}
+
 echo "git checkout ${PUGIXML_VERSION} --force"
 git checkout ${PUGIXML_VERSION} --force
 
-mkdir -p ${PUGIXML_BUILD_DIR}
-cd ${PUGIXML_BUILD_DIR}
-time cmake -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release \
-           -DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX=${PUGIXML_INSTALL_DIR} \
-           -DBUILD_SHARED_LIBS=ON \
-           -DBUILD_TESTS=OFF \
-           ${PUGIXML_BUILD_OPTS} ..
-time cmake --build . --config Release --target install
+if [[ -z $DEP_DOWNLOAD_ONLY ]]; then
+    time cmake -S . -B ${PUGIXML_BUILD_DIR} -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release \
+               -DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX=${PUGIXML_INSTALL_DIR} \
+               -DBUILD_SHARED_LIBS=ON \
+               -DBUILD_TESTS=OFF \
+               ${PUGIXML_BUILD_OPTS} ..
+    time cmake --build ${PUGIXML_BUILD_DIR} --config Release --target install
+fi
 
 # ls -R ${PUGIXML_INSTALL_DIR}
 popd
diff --git a/src/build-scripts/build_pybind11.bash b/src/build-scripts/build_pybind11.bash
index 5b5bb85d6..d7b45c96d 100755
--- a/src/build-scripts/build_pybind11.bash
+++ b/src/build-scripts/build_pybind11.bash
@@ -42,15 +42,12 @@ cd ${PYBIND11_SRC_DIR}
 echo "git checkout ${PYBIND11_VERSION} --force"
 git checkout ${PYBIND11_VERSION} --force
 
-mkdir -p ${PYBIND11_BUILD_DIR}
-cd ${PYBIND11_BUILD_DIR}
-
 if [[ -z $DEP_DOWNLOAD_ONLY ]]; then
-    time cmake -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release \
+    time cmake -S . -B ${PYBIND11_BUILD_DIR} -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release \
                -DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX=${PYBIND11_INSTALL_DIR} \
                -DPYBIND11_TEST=OFF \
-               ${PYBIND11_BUILD_OPTS} ..
-    time cmake --build . --config Release --target install
+               ${PYBIND11_BUILD_OPTS}
+    time cmake --build ${PYBIND11_BUILD_DIR} --config Release --target install
 fi
 
 # ls -R ${PYBIND11_INSTALL_DIR}
diff --git a/src/build-scripts/gh-installdeps.bash b/src/build-scripts/gh-installdeps.bash
index 3fda71c99..4ab5e9dab 100755
--- a/src/build-scripts/gh-installdeps.bash
+++ b/src/build-scripts/gh-installdeps.bash
@@ -126,6 +126,10 @@ else
     source src/build-scripts/build_llvm.bash
 fi
 
+if [[ "$CMAKE_VERSION" != "" ]] ; then
+    source src/build-scripts/build_cmake.bash
+fi
+cmake --version
 
 
 if [[ "$OPTIX_VERSION" != "" ]] ; then
@@ -147,11 +151,10 @@ if [[ "$OPTIX_VERSION" != "" ]] ; then
 fi
 
 
-if [[ "$CMAKE_VERSION" != "" ]] ; then
-    source src/build-scripts/build_cmake.bash
-fi
-cmake --version
 
+#
+# Packages we need to build from scratch.
+#
 
 source src/build-scripts/build_pybind11.bash
 
diff --git a/src/cmake/compiler.cmake b/src/cmake/compiler.cmake
index b02b2a591..a90730484 100644
--- a/src/cmake/compiler.cmake
+++ b/src/cmake/compiler.cmake
@@ -15,13 +15,11 @@
 ###########################################################################
 # Print some basic status about the system and compiler
 #
-if (VERBOSE)
-    message (STATUS "CMAKE_SYSTEM_NAME      = ${CMAKE_SYSTEM_NAME}")
-    message (STATUS "CMAKE_SYSTEM_VERSION   = ${CMAKE_SYSTEM_VERSION}")
-    message (STATUS "CMAKE_SYSTEM_PROCESSOR = ${CMAKE_SYSTEM_PROCESSOR}")
-endif ()
-message (STATUS "CMAKE_CXX_COMPILER     = ${CMAKE_CXX_COMPILER}")
-message (STATUS "CMAKE_CXX_COMPILER_ID  = ${CMAKE_CXX_COMPILER_ID}")
+message (VERBOSE "CMAKE_SYSTEM_NAME      = ${CMAKE_SYSTEM_NAME}")
+message (VERBOSE "CMAKE_SYSTEM_VERSION   = ${CMAKE_SYSTEM_VERSION}")
+message (VERBOSE "CMAKE_SYSTEM_PROCESSOR = ${CMAKE_SYSTEM_PROCESSOR}")
+message (STATUS  "CMAKE_CXX_COMPILER     = ${CMAKE_CXX_COMPILER}")
+message (STATUS  "CMAKE_CXX_COMPILER_ID  = ${CMAKE_CXX_COMPILER_ID}")
 
 
 ###########################################################################
@@ -44,9 +42,7 @@ if (CMAKE_COMPILER_IS_GNUCC)
     execute_process (COMMAND ${CMAKE_CXX_COMPILER} -dumpversion
                      OUTPUT_VARIABLE GCC_VERSION
                      OUTPUT_STRIP_TRAILING_WHITESPACE)
-    if (VERBOSE)
-        message (STATUS "Using gcc ${GCC_VERSION} as the compiler")
-    endif ()
+    message (VERBOSE "Using gcc ${GCC_VERSION} as the compiler")
 else ()
     set (GCC_VERSION 0)
 endif ()
@@ -63,26 +59,18 @@ if (CMAKE_CXX_COMPILER_ID MATCHES "Clang" OR CMAKE_CXX_COMPILER MATCHES "[Cc]lan
         set (CMAKE_CXX_COMPILER_ID "AppleClang")
         set (CMAKE_COMPILER_IS_APPLECLANG 1)
         string (REGEX REPLACE ".* version ([0-9]+\\.[0-9]+).*" "\\1" APPLECLANG_VERSION_STRING ${clang_full_version_string})
-        if (VERBOSE)
-            message (STATUS "The compiler is Clang: ${CMAKE_CXX_COMPILER_ID} version ${APPLECLANG_VERSION_STRING}")
-        endif ()
+        message (VERBOSE "The compiler is Clang: ${CMAKE_CXX_COMPILER_ID} version ${APPLECLANG_VERSION_STRING}")
     elseif (CMAKE_CXX_COMPILER_ID MATCHES "IntelLLVM")
         set (CMAKE_COMPILER_IS_INTELCLANG 1)
         string (REGEX MATCH "[0-9]+(\\.[0-9]+)+" INTELCLANG_VERSION_STRING ${clang_full_version_string})
-        if (VERBOSE)
-            message (STATUS "The compiler is Intel Clang: ${CMAKE_CXX_COMPILER_ID} version ${INTELCLANG_VERSION_STRING}")
-        endif ()
+        message (VERBOSE "The compiler is Intel Clang: ${CMAKE_CXX_COMPILER_ID} version ${INTELCLANG_VERSION_STRING}")
     else ()
         string (REGEX REPLACE ".* version ([0-9]+\\.[0-9]+).*" "\\1" CLANG_VERSION_STRING ${clang_full_version_string})
-        if (VERBOSE)
-            message (STATUS "The compiler is Clang: ${CMAKE_CXX_COMPILER_ID} version ${CLANG_VERSION_STRING}")
-        endif ()
+        message (VERBOSE "The compiler is Clang: ${CMAKE_CXX_COMPILER_ID} version ${CLANG_VERSION_STRING}")
     endif ()
 elseif (CMAKE_CXX_COMPILER_ID MATCHES "Intel")
     set (CMAKE_COMPILER_IS_INTEL 1)
-    if (VERBOSE)
-        message (STATUS "Using Intel as the compiler")
-    endif ()
+    message (VERBOSE "Using Intel as the compiler")
 endif ()
 
 
@@ -314,9 +302,7 @@ if (NOT USE_SIMD STREQUAL "")
     else ()
         string (REPLACE "," ";" SIMD_FEATURE_LIST ${USE_SIMD})
         foreach (feature ${SIMD_FEATURE_LIST})
-            if (VERBOSE)
-                message (STATUS "SIMD feature: ${feature}")
-            endif ()
+            message (VERBOSE "SIMD feature: ${feature}")
             if (MSVC OR CMAKE_COMPILER_IS_INTEL)
                 set (SIMD_COMPILE_FLAGS ${SIMD_COMPILE_FLAGS} "/arch:${feature}")
             else ()
@@ -423,7 +409,7 @@ if (CLANG_TIDY)
     find_program(CLANG_TIDY_EXE NAMES "clang-tidy"
                  DOC "Path to clang-tidy executable")
     message (STATUS "CLANG_TIDY_EXE ${CLANG_TIDY_EXE}")
-    if (CLANG_TIDY_EXE AND NOT ${CMAKE_VERSION} VERSION_LESS 3.6)
+    if (CLANG_TIDY_EXE)
         set (CMAKE_CXX_CLANG_TIDY
              "${CLANG_TIDY_EXE}"
              )
@@ -525,9 +511,7 @@ else ()
     set (SOVERSION ${PROJECT_VERSION_MAJOR}.${PROJECT_VERSION_MINOR}.${PROJECT_VERSION_PATCH}
          CACHE STRING "Set the SO version for dynamic libraries")
 endif ()
-if (VERBOSE)
-    message(STATUS "Setting SOVERSION to: ${SOVERSION}")
-endif ()
+message(VERBOSE "Setting SOVERSION to: ${SOVERSION}")
 
 
 ###########################################################################
@@ -589,9 +573,7 @@ else ()
     # add the automatically determined parts of the RPATH that
     # point to directories outside the build tree to the install RPATH
     set (CMAKE_INSTALL_RPATH_USE_LINK_PATH TRUE)
-    if (VERBOSE)
-        message (STATUS "CMAKE_INSTALL_RPATH = ${CMAKE_INSTALL_RPATH}")
-    endif ()
+    message (VERBOSE "CMAKE_INSTALL_RPATH = ${CMAKE_INSTALL_RPATH}")
 endif ()
 # OSL considerations because we run oslc in the course of building:
 # Use (i.e. don't skip) the full RPATH for the build tree
diff --git a/src/cmake/cuda_macros.cmake b/src/cmake/cuda_macros.cmake
index 40df534e6..d9f5b49e3 100644
--- a/src/cmake/cuda_macros.cmake
+++ b/src/cmake/cuda_macros.cmake
@@ -69,9 +69,7 @@ function ( MAKE_CUDA_BITCODE src suffix generated_bc extra_clang_args )
 
     # Setup the compile flags
     get_property (CURRENT_DEFINITIONS DIRECTORY PROPERTY COMPILE_DEFINITIONS)
-    if (VERBOSE)
-        message (STATUS "Current #defines are ${CURRENT_DEFINITIONS}")
-    endif ()
+    message (VERBOSE "Current #defines are ${CURRENT_DEFINITIONS}")
     foreach (def ${CURRENT_DEFINITIONS})
         set (LLVM_COMPILE_FLAGS ${LLVM_COMPILE_FLAGS} "-D${def}")
     endforeach()
@@ -90,9 +88,7 @@ function ( MAKE_CUDA_BITCODE src suffix generated_bc extra_clang_args )
     if (NOT LLVM_BC_GENERATOR)
         message (FATAL_ERROR "You must have a valid llvm bitcode generator (clang++) somewhere.")
     endif ()
-    if (VERBOSE)
-        message (STATUS "Using LLVM_BC_GENERATOR ${LLVM_BC_GENERATOR} to generate bitcode.")
-    endif()
+    message (VERBOSE "Using LLVM_BC_GENERATOR ${LLVM_BC_GENERATOR} to generate bitcode.")
 
     if (NOT LLVM_AS_TOOL)
       find_program (LLVM_AS_TOOL NAMES "llvm-as"
diff --git a/src/cmake/externalpackages.cmake b/src/cmake/externalpackages.cmake
index ce47f2753..5d9261408 100644
--- a/src/cmake/externalpackages.cmake
+++ b/src/cmake/externalpackages.cmake
@@ -53,7 +53,9 @@ else ()
     # cmake output (e.g. boost 1.70.0, cmake <= 3.14). Specifically it fails
     # to set the expected variables printed below. So until that's fixed
     # force FindBoost.cmake to use the original brute force path.
-    set (Boost_NO_BOOST_CMAKE ON)
+    if (NOT DEFINED Boost_NO_BOOST_CMAKE)
+        set (Boost_NO_BOOST_CMAKE ON)
+    endif ()
     checked_find_package (Boost REQUIRED
                        VERSION_MIN 1.55
                        COMPONENTS ${Boost_COMPONENTS}
diff --git a/src/cmake/flexbison.cmake b/src/cmake/flexbison.cmake
index 307f2acbd..9959cfa58 100644
--- a/src/cmake/flexbison.cmake
+++ b/src/cmake/flexbison.cmake
@@ -38,9 +38,7 @@ if ( FLEX_EXECUTABLE AND BISON_EXECUTABLE )
         # XXX: This may be excessive now that OSL::pvt::ExtraArg is mangled into the function signature
         add_definitions(-D${prefix}parse=${PROJ_NAMESPACE_V}_${prefix}parse)
 
-        if (VERBOSE)
-            message (STATUS "FLEX_BISON flex=${flexsrc} bison=${bisonsrc} prefix=${prefix}")
-        endif ()
+        message (VERBOSE "FLEX_BISON flex=${flexsrc} bison=${bisonsrc} prefix=${prefix}")
         get_filename_component ( bisonsrc_we ${bisonsrc} NAME_WE )
         set ( bisonoutputcxx "${CMAKE_CURRENT_BINARY_DIR}/${bisonsrc_we}.cpp" )
         set ( bisonoutputh "${CMAKE_CURRENT_BINARY_DIR}/${bisonsrc_we}.h" )
@@ -54,9 +52,7 @@ if ( FLEX_EXECUTABLE AND BISON_EXECUTABLE )
         get_filename_component ( FLEX_UP ${FLEX_EXECUTABLE} PATH )
         get_filename_component ( FLEX_UP_UP ${FLEX_UP} PATH )
         set ( FLEX_INCLUDE_DIR "${FLEX_UP_UP}/include" )
-        if (VERBOSE)
-            message (STATUS "Flex include dir = ${FLEX_INCLUDE_DIR}")
-        endif ()
+        message (VERBOSE "Flex include dir = ${FLEX_INCLUDE_DIR}")
         include_directories ( ${FLEX_INCLUDE_DIR} )
 
         # include_directories ( ${CMAKE_CURRENT_BINARY_DIR} )
diff --git a/src/cmake/llvm_macros.cmake b/src/cmake/llvm_macros.cmake
index efed73117..fc7819018 100644
--- a/src/cmake/llvm_macros.cmake
+++ b/src/cmake/llvm_macros.cmake
@@ -7,25 +7,19 @@ set(_THIS_MODULE_BASE_DIR "${CMAKE_CURRENT_LIST_DIR}")
 
 function ( EMBED_LLVM_BITCODE_IN_CPP src_list suffix output_name list_to_append_cpp extra_clang_args include_dirs)
 
-    if (VERBOSE)
-        message (STATUS "EMBED_LLVM_BITCODE_IN_CPP src_list=${src_list}")
-    endif ()
+    message (VERBOSE "EMBED_LLVM_BITCODE_IN_CPP src_list=${src_list}")
 
     foreach ( src ${src_list} )
         get_filename_component ( src_we ${src} NAME_WE )
         set ( src_asm "${CMAKE_CURRENT_BINARY_DIR}/${src_we}${suffix}.s" )
         set ( src_bc "${CMAKE_CURRENT_BINARY_DIR}/${src_we}${suffix}.bc" )
-        if (VERBOSE)
-            message (STATUS "EMBED_LLVM_BITCODE_IN_CPP in=${src}")
-            message (STATUS "EMBED_LLVM_BITCODE_IN_CPP asm=${src_asm}")
-            message (STATUS "EMBED_LLVM_BITCODE_IN_CPP bc=${src_bc}")
-        endif ()
+        message (VERBOSE "EMBED_LLVM_BITCODE_IN_CPP in=${src}")
+        message (VERBOSE "EMBED_LLVM_BITCODE_IN_CPP asm=${src_asm}")
+        message (VERBOSE "EMBED_LLVM_BITCODE_IN_CPP bc=${src_bc}")
         list ( APPEND src_bc_list ${src_bc} )
 
         get_property (CURRENT_DEFINITIONS DIRECTORY PROPERTY COMPILE_DEFINITIONS)
-        if (VERBOSE)
-            message (STATUS "Current #defines are ${CURRENT_DEFINITIONS}")
-        endif ()
+        message (VERBOSE "Current #defines are ${CURRENT_DEFINITIONS}")
         foreach (def ${CURRENT_DEFINITIONS})
             set (LLVM_COMPILE_FLAGS ${LLVM_COMPILE_FLAGS} "-D${def}")
         endforeach()
@@ -44,9 +38,7 @@ function ( EMBED_LLVM_BITCODE_IN_CPP src_list suffix output_name list_to_append_
         if (NOT LLVM_BC_GENERATOR)
             message (FATAL_ERROR "You must have a valid llvm bitcode generator (clang++) somewhere.")
         endif ()
-        if (VERBOSE)
-            message (STATUS "Using LLVM_BC_GENERATOR ${LLVM_BC_GENERATOR} to generate bitcode.")
-        endif()
+        message (VERBOSE "Using LLVM_BC_GENERATOR ${LLVM_BC_GENERATOR} to generate bitcode.")
 
         if (NOT LLVM_AS_TOOL)
             find_program (LLVM_AS_TOOL NAMES "llvm-as"
@@ -106,12 +98,9 @@ function ( EMBED_LLVM_BITCODE_IN_CPP src_list suffix output_name list_to_append_
         WORKING_DIRECTORY "${CMAKE_CURRENT_SOURCE_DIR}" )
     endforeach ()
 
-
-    if (VERBOSE)
-        message ( STATUS "^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^" )
-        message ( STATUS "src_bc_list: ${src_bc_list} ")
-        message ( STATUS "^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^" )
-    endif()
+    message (VERBOSE "^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^" )
+    message (VERBOSE "src_bc_list: ${src_bc_list} ")
+    message (VERBOSE "^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^" )
 
     # Link all of the individual LLVM bitcode files
     set ( linked_src_bc "${CMAKE_CURRENT_BINARY_DIR}/${output_name}.bc" )
diff --git a/src/cmake/modules/Findpartio.cmake b/src/cmake/modules/Findpartio.cmake
index 1d42c5039..c53cfe743 100644
--- a/src/cmake/modules/Findpartio.cmake
+++ b/src/cmake/modules/Findpartio.cmake
@@ -13,13 +13,9 @@
 # Hack! prefer a config if it can be found
 find_package(partio CONFIG)
 if (PARTIO_FOUND OR partio_FOUND)
-    if (VERBOSE)
-        message (STATUS "partio found via config")
-    endif ()
+    message (VERBOSE "partio found via config")
 else ()
-    if (VERBOSE)
-        message (STATUS "partio falling back to FindPartio.cmake")
-    endif ()
+    message (VERBOSE "partio falling back to FindPartio.cmake")
 
 
 find_path (PARTIO_INCLUDE_DIR NAMES Partio.h)
diff --git a/src/cmake/modules/Findpugixml.cmake b/src/cmake/modules/Findpugixml.cmake
index ff047fd61..418a8c9db 100644
--- a/src/cmake/modules/Findpugixml.cmake
+++ b/src/cmake/modules/Findpugixml.cmake
@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@ find_package (pugixml CONFIG)
 if (TARGET pugixml::pugixml)
     # New pugixml (>= 1.11) has nice config files we can rely on and makes a
     # pugixml::pugixml target.
-    message (STATUS "Found CONFIG for pugixml (>=1.11)")
+    message (VERBOSE "Found CONFIG for pugixml (>=1.11)")
 
     set (PUGIXML_FOUND true)
     set (pugixml_FOUND true)
diff --git a/src/cmake/pythonutils.cmake b/src/cmake/pythonutils.cmake
index c41fedfe0..7bbf1fc72 100644
--- a/src/cmake/pythonutils.cmake
+++ b/src/cmake/pythonutils.cmake
@@ -43,11 +43,9 @@ macro (find_python)
     if (NOT DEFINED PYTHON_SITE_DIR)
         set (PYTHON_SITE_DIR "${CMAKE_INSTALL_LIBDIR}/python${PYTHON_VERSION_FOUND}/site-packages")
     endif ()
-    if (VERBOSE)
-        message (STATUS "    Python site packages dir ${PYTHON_SITE_DIR}")
-        message (STATUS "    Python to include 'lib' prefix: ${PYLIB_LIB_PREFIX}")
-        message (STATUS "    Python to include SO version: ${PYLIB_INCLUDE_SONAME}")
-    endif ()
+    message (VERBOSE "    Python site packages dir ${PYTHON_SITE_DIR}")
+    message (VERBOSE "    Python to include 'lib' prefix: ${PYLIB_LIB_PREFIX}")
+    message (VERBOSE "    Python to include SO version: ${PYLIB_INCLUDE_SONAME}")
 endmacro()
 
 
@@ -95,9 +93,7 @@ macro (setup_python_module)
     endif ()
 
     if (PYLIB_INCLUDE_SONAME)
-        if (VERBOSE)
-            message(STATUS "Setting Py${lib_MODULE} SOVERSION to: ${SOVERSION}")
-        endif ()
+        message(VERBOSE "Setting Py${lib_MODULE} SOVERSION to: ${SOVERSION}")
         set_target_properties(${target_name} PROPERTIES
             VERSION ${PROJECT_VERSION_MAJOR}.${PROJECT_VERSION_MINOR}
             SOVERSION ${SOVERSION} )
diff --git a/src/cmake/testing.cmake b/src/cmake/testing.cmake
index 17fd656fb..cce492e1d 100644
--- a/src/cmake/testing.cmake
+++ b/src/cmake/testing.cmake
@@ -236,9 +236,7 @@ macro ( TESTSUITE )
         endif ()
 
     endforeach ()
-    if (VERBOSE)
-        message (STATUS "Added tests: ${ALL_TEST_LIST}")
-    endif ()
+    message (VERBOSE "Added tests: ${ALL_TEST_LIST}")
 endmacro ()
 
 macro (osl_add_all_tests)
diff --git a/src/doc/CMakeLists.txt b/src/doc/CMakeLists.txt
index 34db56ee6..79ea309b8 100644
--- a/src/doc/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/src/doc/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -38,9 +38,7 @@ macro (docdeep_generate)
     # ^^ syntax: prefix options one-arg-keywords multi-arg-keywords args
     set (oslfile ${_docdeep_SOURCE})
     set (mdfile "${_docdeep_NAME}.md.html")
-    if (VERBOSE)
-        message (STATUS "docdeep will make '${mdfile}'")
-    endif ()
+    message (VERBOSE "docdeep will make '${mdfile}'")
     set (docdeep_program ${CMAKE_SOURCE_DIR}/src/build-scripts/docdeep.py)
     add_custom_command (OUTPUT ${mdfile}
         COMMAND ${Python_EXECUTABLE} ${docdeep_program} -d ${_docdeep_NAME} -s docs.css
diff --git a/src/include/CMakeLists.txt b/src/include/CMakeLists.txt
index 503bfa4b4..f9e51c6a6 100644
--- a/src/include/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/src/include/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -28,16 +28,12 @@ endif()
 
 
 set (versionfile oslversion.h)
-if (VERBOSE)
-    message (STATUS "Create ${versionfile} from ${versionfile}.in")
-endif ()
+message (VERBOSE "Create ${versionfile} from ${versionfile}.in")
 configure_file (${PROJECT_NAME}/${versionfile}.in "${CMAKE_BINARY_DIR}/include/${PROJECT_NAME}/${versionfile}" @ONLY)
 list (APPEND public_headers "${CMAKE_BINARY_DIR}/include/${PROJECT_NAME}/${versionfile}")
 
 set (oslconfighfile oslconfig.h)
-if (VERBOSE)
-    message (STATUS "Create ${oslconfighfile} from ${oslconfighfile}.in")
-endif ()
+message (VERBOSE "Create ${oslconfighfile} from ${oslconfighfile}.in")
 configure_file (${PROJECT_NAME}/${oslconfighfile}.in "${CMAKE_BINARY_DIR}/include/${PROJECT_NAME}/${oslconfighfile}" @ONLY)
 list (APPEND public_headers "${CMAKE_BINARY_DIR}/include/${PROJECT_NAME}/${oslconfighfile}")
 
diff --git a/src/shaders/CMakeLists.txt b/src/shaders/CMakeLists.txt
index 1ea7beed5..44aaa2c52 100644
--- a/src/shaders/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/src/shaders/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -29,9 +29,7 @@ macro (oslc_compile)
         get_filename_component ( oslsrc_we ${_shader_OSL} NAME_WE )
         set (osofile "${CMAKE_CURRENT_BINARY_DIR}/${oslsrc_we}.oso")
     endif ()
-    if (VERBOSE)
-        message (STATUS "oslc will make '${oslfile}'  ->  '${osofile}'")
-    endif ()
+    message (VERBOSE "oslc will make '${oslfile}'  ->  '${osofile}'")
     set (stdosl_header "${CMAKE_SOURCE_DIR}/src/shaders/stdosl.h")
     set (oslc_args -q ${_shader_DEFINES} "-I${CMAKE_CURRENT_SOURCE_DIR}")
     foreach (_incdir ${_shader_INCLUDE_DIRS})