import matplotlib.pyplot as plt
import numpy as np
from matplotlib.patches import Ellipse
delta = 45.0 # degrees
angles = np.arange(0, 360 + delta, delta)
ells = [Ellipse((1, 1), 4, 2, a) for a in angles]
a = plt.subplot(111, aspect='equal')
for e in ells:
e.set_clip_box(a.bbox)
e.set_alpha(0.1)
a.add_artist(e)
plt.xlim(-2, 4)
plt.ylim(-1, 3)
plt.show()