Python figure and axes object

Question

I have a big unresolved question about the matplotlib Python module.

If I create a figure called [Figure1], with 2 axes [Ax1, Ax2], and another figure [Figure2], is there a function or method that will allow me to export the Ax1 object from Figure1 and redraw it to the Figure2 object?

Answer 1

In general axes are bound to a figure. The reason is, that matplotlib usually performs some operations in the background to make them look nice in the figure.

There are some hacky ways around this, also this one, but the general consensus seems to be that one should avoid trying to copy axes.

On the other hand this need not be a problem or a restriction at all.

You can always define a function which does the plotting and use this on several figures like so:

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

def plot1(ax,  **kwargs):
    x = range(5)
    y = [5,4,5,1,2]
    ax.plot(x,y, c=kwargs.get("c", "r"))
    ax.set_xlim((0,5))
    ax.set_title(kwargs.get("title", "Some title"))
    # do some more specific stuff with your axes

#create a figure    
fig, (ax1, ax2) = plt.subplots(1,2)
# add the same plot to it twice
plot1(ax1)
plot1(ax2, c="b", title="Some other title")
plt.savefig(__file__+".png")

plt.close("all")

# add the same plot to a different figure
fig, ax1 = plt.subplots(1,1)
plot1(ax1)
plt.show()