This is a briar; the Smilax, aka the cat briar because of its long sharp stickers. It is a tree climber that grows like kudzu, and if you ever have walked into one you will remember it. What you see here is the stalk in the lower right corner of the picture, and the tentacles that it puts out for support as it makes its climb. Most of the out of focus color in the background comes from scrub oaks that have not, and usually do not, shed their leaves. Mother Nature is quite the artist.
