Good on you!
"To search for enlightenment is to look for the horse you are riding." (love those Easterners)
Re IT: It's all about the data---identifying it, modeling its flow through a system, leaving space for it to evolve, and protecting it. The rest is just learning and using the appropriate tools (operating systems, languages). Operationally---work at your own pace, refuse to be hurried, and test EVERYTHING. A helpful rule of thumb (for me, anyway): If you can't fit a design on a single sheet of paper (8.5 x 11), you don't understand the system; don't program anything until you do; keep asking questions and learning.
You can do art and IT, but it is hard to do them at the same time. At least, I never could. Have fun!