Let $X$ be a compact Kahler manifold and let $\mathcal M$ denote the space of hermitian metrics on $X$. We'll identify a hermitian metric with a smooth, real and positive $(1,1)$-form $\omega$. Let $\mathcal K$ be the subspace of $\mathcal M$ defined by Kahler metrics, that is, those hermitian metrics $\omega$ such that $d \omega = 0$.
It is possible to equip $\mathcal M$ with a Riemannian metric, for example by using the Hodge $L^2$ metric defined by $$ G(U,V)_\omega = \int_X \langle U,V \rangle dV_\omega, $$ where the inner product inside the integral is the one defined by $\omega$ on $(1,1)$-forms on $X$. Here $U$ and $V$ are vectors tangent to $\mathcal M$, or in other words, they are smooth real $(1,1)$-forms on $X$. Despite some technical issues (the fibers of the tangent space are not complete) this metric admits a Levi-Civita connection, and a curvature tensor, and it induces a metric on $\mathcal K$ by restriction.
Q: How can we calculate the second fundamental form of $\mathcal K$ in $\mathcal M$?
It is tempting to try to do this by considering the exterior derivative as a linear map from $\mathcal M$ to the space of 3-forms on $X$, and saying that $\mathcal K$ is its fiber over $0$. If we were talking about a smooth function $f : \mathcal M \to \mathbb R$, then the second fundamental form of the fiber $f^{-1}(0) \subset \mathcal M$ (assuming smoothness) would be given by the Hessian $-\nabla^2 f$ (see Lang's "Fundamentals of differential geometry, Prop. 2.1, p. 376). Is there a similar formula when the submanifold in question is defined by a map $f : \mathcal M \to \mathcal A$ where the target space is an infinite-dimensional manifold?
An alternative approach would be to use the orthogonal projection onto the normal bundle of $\mathcal K$ in $\mathcal M$, but this projection is expressed using the Laplacian and Green operator associated to the metric $\omega$, so this road promises to be quite bumpy if at all usable. Any references or remarks would be greatly appreciated.