The striking work of Marie-Therese Walter had been exhibited in the United States only once, in 1961 in Los Angeles to commemorate the 80th anniversary of Picasso's birth.
The painting belonged to the late California art patron Frances Lasker Brody, who bought it in the 1950s. Part of the sale proceeds will benefit the Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical Gardens in San Marino, Calif., where she was on the board.
The previous record for a work of art at auction was $104.3 million for a sculpture by Alberto Giacometti on Feb. 3.
